The Black Threads of Fate
by Arathelia
Summary: Sephiroth gets far more than he bargained for when he goes to exact his revenge on the planet. Picking up Vincent, Yuffie, an angst ridden SEED, and various others, it would be a miracle if the one winged angel's sanity managed to survive... FF7 & FF8
1. Ebony Wings and Scarlet Cloth

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 1: Ebony Feathers and Scarlett Clothe**

Disclaimer:

Ok, I am very aware that I do not, **DO NOT, **own Final Fantasy 7 or Final Fantasy 8. However, I do own all of the ides behind this story, the plot, and any OC's that will be mentioned later...even if there is only one. Yeah, I am not really partial to stories with OC characters, but this one actually makes sense and is not just randomly added in.

Please enjoy!!!

* * *

The Main Chamber of the City Of The Ancients. It's secrets long forgotten, its traps many, its rewards...unimaginable. It's halls of ice glimmer in the sun, the lifestream passes peacefully beneath this spot. An Icy throne sits in the very furthest part of the middle of the chamber, it has been empty for ages...it has waited for another more powerful than its last master to sit upon it and rule the Forgotten Realm of the Ancients.

The clinking of chains echoed through the sunlit hall, a solitary slender figure slowly and softly approached the entrance gates.

'_This should be where mother is calling for me from.…'_ The dark clothed man thought as he softly put his gloved hand on the door. The Silvery locks of the notorious man softly fell against the door as the figure leaned his head forward and closed his eyes in concentration. Suddenly, the crevices of the door illuminated and glowed an eerie green as the figure exhaled, making the fluid rush forth faster and faster through the doors veins till the Ancient locking mechanism disengaged with a distinct hiss. The doors creaked open slowly revealing the hidden chamber to the dark souled warrior. A unique grin spread from the warriors mouth with a glint of insanity to it.

'_Mother will be pleased indeed...I've found her home...at last my plan can begin…'_ The figure's black boots clomped on the sacred ground as Sephiroth, ex-Shinra general, entered the space. Soon the warm green energy spread from the door to the ceiling, to the walls; the energy flowing along the veins of the Ancient's Den till all of the green energy descended down from the ceiling, spiraling towards the center of the room, where the floor moved forcefully to reveal its hidden treasure...the passage through the lifestream...

"Soon mother...soon.…Soon we will have our revenge upon this evil earth...and bring about our new society...our paradise..." Sephiroth looked up and his insane grin spread into an outright smile. His silvery locks bounced up and down as his entire chest heaved with evil laughter.

"SOON MOTHER!! SOON WE SHALL BE VICTORIOUS!!!" the words echoed down the empty halls of the den, the doors shutting finally, locking their new master inside, blocking all entry.

"soon..." echoed through the entire decaying city...

* * *

In his usual dark, brooding manner, Vincent stared longingly into the small puddle before him. He thought silently, indulging in his own depressive side. He was sure never to allow himself the slightest outward emotion, maintaining a cool mask of indifference at all times. This allowed him to deal with his own inner turmoil. Recent events involving Sephiroth, particularly his departure from Shinra, had triggered an uncharacteristic sense of nostalgia within him.  
Why did the thought of Sephiroth make him think so fondly of a past he no longer remembered?  
'_Who am I?'_ he thought desperately. Everything before the experimentation done on him was a blank. He no longer remembered who he himself was.  
All he knew was that Sephiroth was the key. He didn't know why he felt this way, but it did not matter. He needed answers and if Sephiroth, supposedly mad, could provide them, he was willing to take a few risks.

Following through with his plan, Vincent had gone to the Forgotten City, certain Sephiroth would soon come there. He moved his coffin into the safety of an old building that had most likely been a cathedral in the past.  
After days of nerve-racking waiting, Vincent finally heard footsteps. Rising with speed that could only be called inhuman, he followed the echoeing footsteps, footsteps that could belong to only one person- Sephiroth.

Sephiroth prowled the deserted streets a ways ahead of him and when he heard the unmistakable creek of a door, a rare smile graced his pale face.  
He had come, just as expected.

* * *

Sephiroth's black trench coat swayed in the cool breeze that was in his new throne

"Now...to acquire a puppet...we must serve the gods of irony and have this planet destroyed by its own people!" The idea elated the dark ex-SOLDIER.

"Perhaps...I remember...one particularly faithful comrade of mine...SOLDIER Valentine...what what his name Mother?" An eerie voice answered him inside his head

_**Vincent son...Vincent Valentine...**_

"Thank you mother...we shall make use of him...will you lure him here Mother?" The eerie voice replied once more inside Sephiroth's head, rather than aloud.

_**Of course son...i had thought of this...**_Jenova swirled in her invisible mist form to the cathedral lair of Vincent leaving herself vulnerable to detection, but not too obvious for him to suspect it was a trap...

* * *

All he had to do was wait for Sephiroth to come out of the door.  
Simple enough. After all, what was a few hours of waiting compared to the yeatrs he had sought the answers to his numerous questions. Besides, time had no meaning for him anymore, anyway. Vincent believed strongly that he had once been completely human but the experiments done on him had drastically changed that. He would live far longer than a human, possibly even living until a well-meaning human came and put him out of his misery. It was too early to be certain of his life span.

Suddenly, he felt it. There was a cold presence within the cathedral with him, something no longer fully living.  
His heart immediately warmed at the prospect of another like himself, even if they insisted on hiding from him.  
As much as he wanted to believe that the presence was another like him, a small voice inside him told him that he was the only one of his kind and that the presence he felt was something far darker and manipulative than he could ever imagine.  
Without warning, a chill ran up his spine, causing him to clutch his tattered cloak tighter to his body, a futile attempt at keeping the warmth from escaping. He had an unmistakable feeling that the presence was somehow making him feel chilled but there was nothing he could do to stop it, and what could it possibly do to him? Kill him? Death would be a welcome for him.

The spirit of Jenova wrapped itself around the figure cloaked in red. She put her mouth to his ear and spoke into his mind, her voice like a dark rising tide in the ocean.

_**Vincent...you seek someone...I know where to find him...**_Her dark presence swirled around him sucking all the warmth from the room.

_**I know the questions that burn inside of your skull...and I have the answers...but my answers are not free...you must first prove yourself...come with me...and if you survive...I shall give you your task...and after the task is complete...you will have your answers...**_With that Jenova left him no time to respond but immediately disentwined herself from him and started floating toward to door.

'_He will make a fine puppet…'_ she thought to herself.

'_That's it, I have finally gone crazy if I am really going to listen to a presence speaking in my head…'_ Vincent thought to himself as he listened to the voice inside his head. He knew this time it was the presence speaking. Once more, he didn't know how, he just felt it. It promised answers...but at a price.  
Was his past worth the price it would ask?

The voice stopped talking and almost immediately he felt the warmth return to him. The presence was not gone, however; He could sense it towards the door.

Was he willing to risk everything for the answers he so deeply desired?

Yes.

He would do anything in his power to find them. If he failed the test the voice spoke of, death would be waiting for him with open arms, an end to his suffering.

* * *

Author's Note:

I hope y'all liked the first chapter! I just fixed spacing errors...or at least, tried to, anyway. If you have any suggestions or ideas, just email or PM me. I love hearing your thoughts and ideas!!!


	2. Operation Cloud

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 2: Operation Cloud**

* * *

Jenova smiled to herself, if such a thing is possible on the metaphysical plane, and thought to herself '_humans...so predictable.…'_ She lead him out the door and to the mountains- perilous peaks of doom, where creatures crawled and vultures lurked. She wrapped herself around Vincent again.

_**Red cloaked warrior...if you can make it through these mountains...to the other-side...there is a door...an Ancient door...then yell...yell with your monstrous rage...the one name that can answer all your questions...Sephiroth...**_With that she left him to his own devices, dissipating and reappearing to Sephiroth. The silver haired warrior looked up at his mother,

"Where is our puppet?" he asked confused. Jenova looked at him with that certain glint in her eye that told him her plan.

_**Proving himself...he will be here shortly... **_Sephiroth nodded and sat in HIS throne

"Now...to wait...for ex-SOLDIER Valentine..."

* * *

'_What have I gotten myself into...?'_

Staring up at the looming mountains, Vincent smiled softly to himself, that is, if a slight tilt at the corners of your mouth is considered a smile. Not for the first time in his life, he had to think of his altering as useful.

Because of his alteration, he could morph into different shapes, one being more of a red cloud than a form. He could move faster than the human eye could see in that form and it had served useful on more than one occasion, being that he was also immune to damage while in it.

What better way to get through a perilous mountain than as a creature immune to damage and moves like liquid?  
If this was all an elaborate trap made by Shinra he could always morph into his dragon-like form. He preferred the more mysterious red cloud form, but the dragon got the job done as well.

Changing his molecular structure at will, Vincent swiftly wove through tunnels and paths, unchallenged by the unsavory creatures dwelling there. Upon reaching the other side, he saw it. Sure enough, just as the voice said, an Ancient door stood before him. In a blur of red he changed his molecular bonding once more to return to his more human looking form. No reason to frighten the one who offers him answers.

'_What had the voice said to do after I reached here? Oh yes...I remember now…'_

Seething with pent up rage, Vincent let it all bubble to the surface, allowing him to show his anger. Years of hiding his emotions had created an endless pit of rage within him. All of his past grievances, his anger at his mistreatment, the experiments, his lost memories, and so many others had contributed to this pit. Usually calm and collected, his rage came as a surprise to him, like a knife shoved to the hilt into your stomach.

He expected his release of emotion to be uncomfortable to him, he who prided himself with his indifference. However, he did not find it uncomfortable at all. He liked it. It felt free, the same feeling he had when he switched out of his human-esque form.

Feeling alive in a completely new way, Vincent did as the voice had said.

"SEPHIROTH!!!!"

He put all of his anger into his yell, a yell that echoed ominously in the distance, sounding like a crazed man.

* * *

'_And so it begins..…'_ Sephiroth thought with a smirk as he sat upon his icy throne.

"Shall we let our guest in, Mother?" he asked Jenova. The icy voice bubbled up inside of Sephiroth's mind.

**_Indeed son...let us begin phase 1..._. **Sephiroth smiled as he lifted a finger casually. The bright green energy flowed from his fingers, coursing through the room, once more bringing this ancient contraption to work. The gears squeaked as the huge Ancient Door opened slowly, revealing the red clad monstrosity known to Sephiroth and Shinra alike as Vincent Valentine. Sephiroth did not rise from his throne to greet him.

"Enter...Vincent..." he said as the green mako energy that coursed through the room seemed to reflect on Sephiroth an even more awe inspiring aura than his usual but none the less still impressive aura. He rose from the throne and walked calmly forward; Grace, power, and beauty glowed from him as he walked. He seemed to be a figure that seemed too perfect to be human. His black trench coat swirled a little as he stood about 5 feet away from Vincent.

"Welcome...my old friend..."

"...friend...?" Vincent said slowly, as if unsure of the word's meaning. He knew nothing of what the man before him spoke of.

He had heard stories of Sephiroth's almost feminine beauty, but seeing it in person was a sensory experience. His long silver hair fell elegantly about his shoulders, creating an eye catching contrast with the black trench coat. The minimal amount of armour he wore and the crisscrossing leather straps across his chest only accented his perfectly sculpted body.  
Shaking his head slightly, Vincent had realized, with much hidden embarrassment, that he had been staring.  
He tried to ignore the beautiful man before him and enter the chamber, but it was too difficult.

'_Oh well, the man probably knows how beautiful he is…'_  
He entered, stopping an arms length away from the ex-Shinra general. With a sudden, newfound boldness, he said,

"Tell me what you know about me."

He came for answers, and he would not leave until he got them.

"Direct as always...unfortunately...I cannot give you said answers...not until...one task is preformed..." Sephiroth said, luring him into making a deal with the devil, literally.

'_I'm getting too good at this...Mother is rubbing off on me…'_ he thought to himself when the icy voice penetrated his mind again

_**And is that such a bad thing son?**_Sephiroth shrugged and turned away from Vincent

"I need you to do one task for me...and then...if after the journey you have further questions...you may ask them of me..." he said lowly, as a part of him almost felt guilt about using his old friend...ALMOST felt guilty.

"You must find one man and follow him...lead him hear to me...kill his companions on the way...and then...I will fulfill your wish..." he turned towards Vincent and looked into his eyes with his piercing green mako eyes

"Find Cloud Strife and lead him here...and then you will have your answers..." Sephiroth sat down in his throne again and then with a dismissive wave of his hand he said

"Mother...see our guest out of here..." Jenova loved the melodrama that her son seemed so fond of.

**O_f course...son._ **She wrapped herself around Vincent making the room whirl around him faster and faster until she teleported him to Neibilheim where it all started. She whispered in his mind

_**Within the actions of the presence lie the ghosts of your past...from the ruins of your old self will you rise anew and find a new purpose in this world...find Cloud Strife...and bring him to me and Sephiroth...then you shall be rewarded...farewell...brave SOLDIER**._ She vanished leaving him alone. Sephiroth smiled sitting on his throne.

"Vincent...Cloud...Zack...all will be welcome...at our reunion..."


	3. Unexpected Encounters

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 3: Unexpected Encounters**

* * *

Vincent looked around him, colours still slightly disoriented from the odd mode of transportation he had just used.He knew Nibelheim was a wreck, but what he saw before him had no description in words. Glass and trash littered the streets, mingling with debris from fallen buildings. The citizens who had once lived cozily in their homes, huddled in the shadows for shelter. These were the people who had lost their homes when the destruction had occurred. Their were buildings remaining, just not many. Hating to admit it, Vincent knew that these people would soon be his prey. Because of Shinra, because of what they had done to him, he was forced to hunt the ones he had once walked side by side with to survive.

It had been at least a year since he had left the basement of the Shinra Mansion to pursue Sephiroth. At least he knew the Mansion was still there, a last refuge whenever he needed it.  
All he had to do was find the one named Cloud Strife and lead him to Sephiroth. For some reason, he felt as though he recognized the name, the same way he felt when around Sephiroth. Somehow he knew them both from his past, he just could not remember how.  
Perhaps Strife would have answers for him once he found him.

Letting his feet carry him, he reached the Shinra Mansion. Ignoring the SOLDIER members inhabiting the upper floor, he headed toward the basement where his coffin was placed. He had spent years in that basement and here he was, returning to it once again.

* * *

Atop a nearby pile of refuse ,which once was once what Sephiroth could only assume was a house, the one winged angel looked out keeping a watchful eye on his new puppet.

'_Hmm...he's still dazed from the teleport...understandable…'_ the black leather clad warrior mused to himself as he played slightly with his gloves. His familiar smirk was painted on his face as his eyes drifted upwards from his gloves to Shinra Mansion

'_My past belongings...they might be of some use to me...I should go and gather my necessary equipment...for I am missing all but my beloved…'_ he thought as he looked to his hip where Masamune, the quick blood thirsty sword which had taken many lives both human and otherwise, hung peacefully at his side.

'_Yes...my 'MASTERED' materia would be nice...and some of my finer trophies that I have acquired over the years would suit me nicely...if only…'_ as his eyes wandered to find his puppet, he found Vincent walking already toward Shinra Mansion.

'_Well that settles it...to Shinra Mansion…'._ He thought. And just as swiftly as he had entered the town, he was gone, vanished in a black plume of ether-worldly smoke.

* * *

Sitting on the lid of his well worn-in coffin, listening intently in the sounds coming from upstairs. He could hear the many SOLDIER members speak of their recent conquests and missions, but what he was truly listening for was any news that would help him piece together his past...or the elusive Cloud Strife. So far, he had heard nothing of interest, unless the rumors that Sephiroth had slept with a few of a men counted. Of course, he doubted these rumors were true, despite Sephiroth's beauty, he doubted the man had any interest in women, let alone men.

So, he sat, awaiting for full dark, passing the time by eavesdropping on the men above.

The voices suddenly hushed at the approach of booted feet. Vincent recognized the sound of those boots. The SOLDIER members all went quiet as the man approached. It could only be one person, only one person was able to instill the fear that radiated from the men above. It was none other than Sephiroth directly above his head.

* * *

Sephiroth laughed at the Shinra SOLDIER's stunned looks as he walked calmly

clomp clomp

through its echoing halls. Sephiroth paused and leaned over to inspect one of the SOLDIER's uniforms. His eyes narrowed

"Soldier...I'm straight...don't be spreading those rumors about me...or else..." Sephiroth didn't need to complete the sentence as everyone in SOLDIER knew even from being just a cadet the number one rule in SOLDIER was DONT fuck WITH SEPHIROTH. The SOLDIER nodded vigorously, still stunned by Sephiroth's presence.

"Y-Y-Yes...SIR!" he saluted and then fainted. Sephiroth chuckled quietly, glancing at the SOLDIER the first was talking to and he immediately snapped to attention. Sephiroth chuckled again and walked through the dusty dirty halls, SOLDIER's snapping to attention, other SOLDIERS cowering in fear. Sephiroth finally reached HIS room, the golden embroidered door welcomed him home.

"At last..." he said softly as he opened the door calmly and then shut it behind him. He looked around the darkly lit room, it seemed that Shinra was still trying to save face by still pronouncing him on "leave" and keeping his room in order. The room was painted a dark blue all the way around with hard polished wood furniture, complete with silk cushions in classical Wutai fashion. The carpet was a dark blood red and was soft as silk. In the middle of the back wall there was Sephiroth's bed black silk sheets and matching pillows with a feather bed mattress, gold embroidered bed posts and a giant array of Wutai swords were arranged above the bed.

'_Finally Shinra is doing me a favor for once...now for a nice…warm...bath.…_' he thought as he militarily unsnapped his shoulder pads, it falling to the floor with a thunk that would have made a small crater in any other floor, he stooped down to unsnap his boots as his silvery locks fell around his head. As the Mythril buckles unclasped with a clink he lifted his foot out of the boot feeling the soft as silk carpet under his feet brought on a supreme feeling of nostalgia. He slid off his Trench coat and hung it on his golden coat rack and undid his black leather trousers leaving him only in his black satin boxers. The muscles of the tall silver-haired warrior were toned and tense from all the battles he had endured lately and the constant use he put them too. Sephiroth calmly walked across the carpet to his Ivory bathroom, it was called The Ivory Bathroom because literally EVERYTHING in it was made of solid Ivory. The cool Ivory sent a small shiver up Sephiroth's back as he adjusted to the temperature in the Bathroom. He reached over and adjusted the knob on his whirlpool tub turning on the hot water . Sephiroth went over to the mirror to groom his perfect hair while the tub filled. He reached over and ran his Ivory brush through his hair feeling the softness of his slivery slender locks. He put the brush down as he thought about his Mother and walked over to the bathtub. He simply used one finger to untie his boxer strings as he let them hit the floor. He climbed effortlessly into his tub feeling the warm water touch every inch of his toned body. Sephiroth leaned back in the tub and sighed contentedly

"Yeah...haven't had time to relax in forever..." he said to himself. Sephiroth motioned with his hand to his speaker system as it turned on with classical Romantic Era music. He sighed as he poured his cleansing agent into the water that cleaned every inch of his body without so much as a scrub. Reluctantly he took a breath and submerged his head in the water allowing the cleansing agent to clean his hair effortlessly without damaging it in the slightest. With a calm gasp he resurfaced feeling refreshed and tired. The one winged angel climbed out of his tub and slipped on his black silk Wutai robe.

"Time for sleep..." he said softly as he laid back on his feather bed and pulled the black silk sheets close to him, as our favorite one winged dark angel fell into his own dark filled sleep, enwrapped in dark sheets, in a dark room, in a dark mansion with Darker secrets than even the dark clad warrior contained.

* * *

Flitting silently through the halls of Shinra Mansion, moving as a red blur past the numerous SOLDIER members. He knew Sephiroth was present in the mansion, but why? He had sent him specifically to this town so what reason did he have for following him? Was this a trap for him somehow?  
Vincent was not sure what Sephiroth's reasoning was, but He did not like it one bit. He knew where Sephiroth's chambers were located, never having been in them personally, just passing by them occasionally.

If Sephiroth had followed him here out of sheer untrust or even just because this was all a trap for him, Vincent had to know the reason; he had to know what was occurring under his own nose.


	4. Moonlit Tea Party

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 4: Moonlit Tea Party**

* * *

Upon reaching the gold embroidered room, he entered without a sound, knowing Sephiroth would have no reason to lock the door. Why would he? He was dangerous enough to instill fear with his mere presence.However, entering the room, the sight before him caused him to stop dead in his tracks, his mouth long since gone slack.

Sephiroth lay on his silk covered bed, clad in nothing more than a barely covering black rope. His silk blanket was thrown carelessly over one of his legs, his hair splayed elegantly across his pillows. Even in sleep, he looked like a fallen angel; perfectly beautiful and yet utterly dangerous, like a caged tiger in the zoo.

Sephiroth was rudely jerked out of his sleep by his danger senses going wild. Through reflex alone Sephiroth opened his eyes, registered the person who was there, then jumped up from his bed, somersaulting in the air to land gracefully near Masamune who was stacked against a wall on the other-side of the room. He unsheathed the beautiful Angel of Death and quickly moved to dispatch the intruder, until his mind registered one word '_puppet.…_' Sephiroth was able to barely stop himself in midswing, Masamune's deadly blade inches away from severing Vincent in two neat pieces.

"What are you doing here?" Sephiroth seethed.

"One could ask the same of you, Sephiroth. You have rebelled against Shinra, and yet here you stand." Vincent replied, trying desperately not to stare too long at the fallen angel before him. It wasn't that he liked men, it was just that Sephiroth was simply that beautiful. A beauty any woman would envy.

Vincent was very well aware of the massive sword inches from his face, but he also knew how ineffective it would be against him...unless of course Sephiroth decided to cut him up into little shreds.

He hadn't intentionally walked into the room, knowing Sephiroth was asleep. In all actuality, he forgot Sephiroth even _needed_ sleep. The man seemed so utterly inhuman, it was hard to believe he was forced to do the menial tasks of eating and sleeping, just like any other human.

Hating himself for it, Vincent realized he did owe the silver-haired man an apology. It truly was wrong of him to burst in his room. If any one had done that to him, he would have acted in the same manner Sephiroth had.

"I did not mean to awaken you. I simply wanted to know what your purpose for being here was. I had forgotten the distance you must have traveled to get here and that you would need rest. It is no one's fault but my own that we are currently in this compromising...or would you say, embarrassing, situation."

Sephiroth lowered Masamune from Vincent's face and slightly nicked his own arm to draw blood, in keeping with Wutai Samurai tradition, then he sheathed it. Sephiroth straightened his robe and then moved some of his perfectly silver locks out of his face.

"It is alright...and I am not embarrassed, you are a man as I am and judging from your involvment in SOLDIER and The TURKS, I Know you have seen men in much less than this robe." He said as he turned away from Vincent.

"Go...find Cloud...then meet me at the reactor atop of Mt. Nibel... I will await you there...do not dally, Vincent...the more time you waste in this quest the more answers slip from my mind." he said knowing that would motivate the Ex-TURK. As soon as he saw Vincent leave Sephiroth let his robe slip off him and re-dressed himself in his usual manner. Afterwards, he walked over to his closet and rummaged around in it until his eyes found the prize that he had sought after.

"Ah yes...my earnings..." he hefted the bag of gil that had been his spending money as a SOLDIER which was not even 1/10 of his earnings.

"This should do me quite nicely...and now for...yes..." From the corner of his eye Sephiroth spied his true goal, a woven Wutai basket sat in the corner of his closet. Sephiroth dragged it out and lifted the lid to reveal its colorful contents.

"MY materia..." he said in awe as his eyes met the familiar sight of the colorful orbs of MASTERED materia that he had trained and fought with during his battles with Shinra. Slipping them into the slots of his armor and Masamune he equipped himself with HIS materia. "Excellent" Sephiroth said as he eyed himself in the mirror.

'_Truely I am beautiful...it is a shame I have found no desireable woman…'_ Sephiroth thought to himself. '_Most would not suspect a man of my looks and strength and pay to not have tasted the forbidden fruit of a woman...but it is true...a royal shame…'_ he thought softly. Collecting his thoughts and belongings, Sephiroth headed out of the door. With one thought in mind Sephiroth took off at lightning fast speeds.

'_To Wutai.…'_


	5. Lost Kittens

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 5: Lost Kittens**

**Note: Sorry if I utterly rape the Wutai landscape...the games just really don't describe it all that well...plus, I don't truly remember it from the games all that well, anyway.**

**  
**

* * *

Sunlight struggled to get toward the forest floor, the growth of massive bamboo stalks blocked out nearly everything beneath their massive leaves, coating the decaying floor with an eerie green light as it flooded through the plants. Suddenly, a blinding light reflecting off of an object appeared, and with a soft metallic slice a huge line of bamboo stalks were sliced perfectly in half. The shining object curved back and sliced through another row of stalks before stopping in a gloved hand, revealing itself to be what looked awfully like an oversized shuriken.

Yuffie Kisaragi smiled to herself, giggling alone in the forest. The soft laughter echoed through the trees, and she quickly picked up all of the cut stalks and tied them into a bundle. Carrying them on her shoulders, she began her walk back into her home.

'_Another day, I suppose…'_ She thought to herself as she walked out of the forest and into Wutai village. Although the old relics of the homeland were beginning to crumble, the people stayed strong. Children played in the streets, women did laundry, and men trained while the elders played a game much like chess in front of their homes. She couldn't help but smile at everything. Even if she was out of the way of adventure for a while, this was home, and a home like this could never be truly boring.

A dark, brooding man, seeming utterly out of place in the simple town of Wutai. He wore all black, covered by a red, tattered cloak. The man 's face looked almost feminine but the rest of him was all male.

Despite the man's look of stoic indifference, his eyes sparkled with interest. He watched his surroundings as if he was treasuring every moment of the simple town. The things Yuffie Kisaragi found boring and uninteresting, the man seemed to find utterly interest.

Vincent stopped in front of the slight girl, looking down at her cheery form and couldn't help but feel slightly warmer in her presence. She radiated pure happiness. He could tell she was one of those people that found happiness wherever they looked, delighting in almost everything around them.

Yuffie had been looking down at the grass as she walked when she noticed a pair of black leather boots sitting in front of her. Slightly confused she removed her burden of bamboo stalks and looked up, almost gasping when she saw the eyes of such a handsome man. Although dark and brooding, the newcomer seemed to make the young ninja blush.

"Is there something I can help you with, sir?" She asked him sheepishly, her gaze turning downward again as she feebly tried to hide her reddening cheeks.

Vincent couldn't help but noticed the girl before him and how her heart rate had drastically increased as her eyes met his and the sudden red coloring of her cheeks. No one had ever looked at him in that manner before. The only looks he had remembered receiving were that of curiosity, fear and mocking, never a look of...was it…adoration? The girl before him, in her shorts and suspenders, was utterly confusing to him.

He had come to the village of Wutai years before in his quest for answers and he had met an older woman who seemed to know him. She was one of the village elders, predicting the crops success rate each year. Then he had taken her words as just the words of a senile old woman but know he wasn't so sure. Upon meeting Sephiroth he had thought back to his encounter with the woman and her warning to him.  
He had come here to find her, hoping she was still alive so he could question her about her earlier warning to him.

With luck, this girl before him would know of who he spoke and lead him to her.

Yuffie was almost shaking as she sat there anticipating the man's reply. Confused that he was saying nothing, she looked up and frowned to see that he seemed to be staring into space. She took a step foreward, stood on her tip-toes, and waved a gloved hand close to his face.

"Sir, are you awake?" She asked as her cheeks returned to their normal color...

"It isn't polite to stay so silent when someone's asking you a question..."

Vincent came abruptly came into the present, seeing a small gloved hand flittering in front of his face. Immediately, he realized his mistake. Speaking in his low, melodic voice, Vincent replied,

"Sorry, young miss, I seemed to have gotten lost in my own thoughts. I am looking for an elderly woman...perhaps your village seer or something of the sort? I understand I have just acted extremely rudely. Is there anything that can remedy my bad manners and put me back into your good graces, Miss...?" Vincent hated himself for his own rudeness in front of a young lady. It must have shown that he did not interact with people much. He had to make it up to this eccentric girl before him, he could not bare for her to think of him as some sort of monster. He had heard that enough times. He did not need it from this seemingly sweet and kind girl before him.

The girl picked up the bundle of bamboo and carried it on her back again.

"Yuffie Kisaragi. Just call me Yuffie." She glanced over at two boys who were 'sword fighting' each other with long sticks and laughed softly at their awkward movements.

"Don't worry about an apology: I understand. I space out sometimes too. I'm not sure if this woman lives here anymore, but maybe if you gave me her name I could tell you for sure." She sighed softly and looked up at him, his dark eyes making her blush once more.

"Speaking of names, what's yours? I've already told you mine, after all. The nice thing would be to tell me yours in return."

'_Damn, what is it with me today? I am just getting ruder and ruder!!'_

Vincent cautiously glanced over his shoulder, a habit he had not outgrown since his days as Shinra's guinea pig. He looked just to be sure a Shinra member was not lurking in the shadows to pull him back into the shadows. Seeing no-one who looked threatening to him, he shook his head, thinking his own thoughts ridiculous.

"Vincent. My name is Vincent Valentine. I am sorry I forgot to mention it before. I am looking for a woman by the name of Neerija...last I saw her, she predicted something, something I would like to ask her about now." Vincent realized how silly his own words sounded, and quickly tried to explain.

"I mean, it was years ago and I thought nothing of it, but now I am starting to think she was trying to tell me something important...It is foolish, I know, but it is all I have to go on regarding the current situation."

'_I am probably scaring her now..…'_

Changing the topic, suddenly, Vincent asked,

"Well, Yuffie, is it right? Is this your home village? Have you ever been to lands outside of here?"

Yuffie smiled, nodding quickly.

"Yes, Wutai is my home. I've been all over though, of course. I _am_ a materia hunter, after all." She nearly cringed at her words, but managed to hide it.

'_Materia hunter!? who the heck am I kidding? All I do is steal from unsuspecting people...ah well. What this guy doesn't know won't hurt him I guess…'_

Noticing the sudden discomfort between the two, The young ninja coughed a bit and looked up into Vincent's dark eyes again.

"Soo, you're looking for Neerija? She's a nice lady...She's still around, but I'm not sure if she'll be able to talk with you. She just got over a nasty cold a few weeks ago, and last I heard she was still a bit weak from it. You can go and see her if you'd like: Her hut is just over there." raising a small arm, she pointed a dainty finger in the direction of an older hut on the other side of the village. It crawled with vines, and a rather obese-looking tabby cat slept atop it. She laughed upon noticing his expression over the look of the house.

"Don't worry, it won't fall apart or anything. That's probably the strongest hut in the entire village. I can take you there, if you like. I have to deliver some of these bamboo shoots to Neerija anyway."

"Thank you, I would appreciate that very much." As he stepped closer to Yuffie, the corners of his mouth pulled up in a small smile.

"So, a materia hunter? Does that mean I should keep my cloak close by?" Vincent asked, poking fun at the girl's "profession".  
It wasn't that he really minded, after all, he had nothing of value that she could steal...and she seemed like a nice enough girl.

Yuffie laughed, her cheeks becoming red again as she realized that her new friend was teasing her.

"No, of course not. I'd never steal from a newcomer, especially not in my homeland." She smiled and adjusted the burden on her back so it would be easier to carry, then looked back up at him.

"So, Vincent...I don't mean to pry, but I'm just curious. What did Neerija predict for you all those years ago? I mean, I know she's a really good oracle...but what made you decide to come back and ask her something again?"


	6. Dark Return

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 6: Dark Return**

* * *

_'I remember this village...THE village...the village I spared…'_ The one winged Angel thought as he walked slowly down the main street of the village, people moving out of his way in shock as it seemed their would-be conqueror had returned to haunt them yet again. Children ran, old men and women alike scuttled to a fro just to get away from this deadly SOLDIER.

'_Nothing has changed..…'_ he thought as he walked slowly up to the shrine at the head of the village.

Yuffie knew why everyone began to scatter before she heard the frightened screams of the children. The people of Wutai were strong, and little was enough to frighten any of her people, especially enough to scream. She was very young when she had heard the screams last time, but old enough to remember the names and faces of whatever people had caused it. She stopped, shivering slightly, but had the courage to turn around and see who was walking past them to the shrine on the other edge of town. The long hair, the angelic features. Yuffie knew only one person who could ever be so formidable, yet look so attractive.

"S-Sephiroth..." Her frightened voice squeaked softly as she watched the man walk past. She had been naive and unafraid the first time, but she had grown since then. For the first time in her life, she was afraid of someone.

* * *

Sephiroth took no heed of the little girl that seemed to trace his movements with her stare.

'_Hmrph...these people do not even notice when I am angered or whether there is nothing to fear from me...odd.…'_ His thoughts were interrupted by him slamming head on into the little girl.

Undaunted Sephiroth caught her before she fell to the ground and in the same motion stood her straight back up and continued walking.

'_Troublesome people...they don't even watch where they are going…'_ The black trench coat billowed in the wind that had sprung up spontaneously since he had arrived and his silvery locks seemed to dance in the breeze as Sephiroth walked up the steps to the temple and with a single easy gesture flung open the heavy mythril doors and calmly walked inside.

'_I...I must see...if anything has changed since the last time I was here..…'_ he thought to himself.

* * *

Yuffie stood there in a daze, unsure of what had just happened. She remembered talking with Vincent, and then suddenly being caught in fear at the sight of Sephiroth returning to the village. She had been sure she was standing out of the way: She was barely in the middle of the street when the taller man had passed. A harsh shove, a gentle hand, and then The young ninja standing there dazed as the angelic being continued onward toward the shrine.

'_I must be going crazy. Sephiroth shouldn't be here...he wasn't supposed to come back…'_

Her expression hardening, Yuffie removed her parcel of bamboo and handed it to Vincent.

"Wait here, I'll be back in a minute." Her fists clenched, her mind whirled in curiosity as she headed after Sephiroth toward the shrine. her heart felt icy cold with fear, but she couldn't help but deny any idea that such a horrible, evil man could come back to haunt her beautiful village.

* * *

With his superb hearing, Vincent easily heard the name the girl Yuffie had uttered. What reason did _he_ have for being in the village of Wutai?

Vincent knew nothing of the previous towns and cities that Sephiroth had single-handedly destroyed, having been Hojo's personal pet project at the time.  
For one who knew nothing of the pathway Sephiroth had cut through the many citizens of various towns, he easily recognized the cold, homicidal glare of a seasoned murderer.

In one fluid motion he pulled Yuffie protectively behind him, keeping her out of Sephiroth's direct line of fire.  
Vincent's face retained its usual calm mask, and yet, somehow, something was different. Despite his calm exterior, his crimson's eyes gleamed savagely, like a wolf waiting in the dark for its prey.

Just like Yuffie, one word was enough. That one word, spoken in almost every tone, the one word that could make women and men alike cower in fear.

"Sephiroth..."

Vincent said it, monotonously, as if the man before him was the devil incarnate in an angel's body.

Confused, Yuffie pried Vincent's fingers off of her green shirtsleeve. She hardly noticed the tone in his voice when he uttered the strange man's name. What she did notice was the sudden fire in his eyes. The fire showed pain, and it burned brightly. Yuffie longed to dull that pain somehow.

"Vincent...are you alright?" She asked, reaching up and placing a small hand on his muscular shoulder. She had completely forgotten about Sephiroth: All that mattered now was helping her new friend.

"Come on...we'd better go talk to Neerija. It's probably the best thing to do for now."

* * *

Sephiroth looked around the velvet red Temple, short stubby bald monks in grey robes shuffled around in the temple totally ignoring the tall silver haired warrior that stood in their midst.

'_Peace...such a rare feeling...…'_ the tall muscular armored man thought as he walked amoung the monks till he found what he was so desperately searching for...a koi pond. Sephiroth leaned over the ledge of the upper balcony of the Temple.

'_The gardens...at last…'_ he thought softly to himself as he gracefully jumped down from the ledge and landed with almost feline grace on the cobblestone path of the gardens of the Temple. Sephiroth smiled a little.

'_It's so...calm...peaceful...removed...from the real world…'_ he thought as he sat down on his favorite meditation rock that overlooked the water fall and the lake. He closed his eyes opening himself to the current of the life-stream, he could feel the monks inner peace resounding and echoing through the temple. He felt the stunning presence of the...the...light. He couldn't explain how he felt , he felt at ease, calm, welcome. As he meditated, the surroundings assumed their rainbows of color inside his head everything glowed and wavered as if in a rushing body of water...a stream...the life stream. Everything had its color, its vibrancy, its emotion...except him.

'_Nothing has changed...it is as I thought...I am.…'_ the picture in his mind zoomed out as he stood apart from everything, where there was color in everything else...there was only void in him...blackness...eternal void..._I am a monster..._ his eyes narrowed.

'_I am not the monster here...THEY ARE!' _ It all suddenly became clear to him, it was all an abomination, the color, the life, the hate, the love...

'_All is skewed here...it has gone horribly wrong...and must be made right.'_ He clenched his fist and rose from the rock slowly lifting himself in the air with the sheer force of will.

'_I will be the one to right these deformations...these...freaks...I will annihilate them all...and a new perfect race will rise from the ashes...a new race of Ancients...a new Cetra…'_ Sephiroth's eyes finally opened to see himself hundreds of feet in the air above Wutai.

'…_and Gods we will be...rulers of the sea...sand and land.…'_ finally a crooked grin spread across his face, a piece of his mind seemed to snap into place and he let out a deep bellowing laugh.

"I HAVE MY PURPOSE NOW!!! I WILL CARRY OUT YOUR PLAN MOTHER!!! YOUR WILL BE DONE!!!" With that the mighty one winged angel flew off at the speed of sound finally using a fraction of his Legendary power.

'_None shall be spared...and they will pay for their crimes...for mutating...from the perfect Cetra...to these base life forms...and I will rule this new earth...this...perfection...as their King...but where to rule them from...why not serve irony and rule out of the hollow shell of my fallen bretheren...but first...to Midgar...to bring that giant lumbering beast to its knees...once it falls...yes...I shall have all the influence I need...and I must seek out my bretheren...my fellow experiments...those with Mother in them...I must go to Midgar...to fulfill my purpose.'_

* * *

Yuffie tried to focus on getting Vincent to visit the elderly woman across the way, but it was more difficult than she thought it would be. Her mind kept on going back to Sephiroth.

'_I can't believe he came back after all these years…'_ Like the other people of Wutai, she was certainly suprised that the warrior had returned to their peaceful village. He was respected for sparing their village, that much was true. But he was still hated for destroying fellow villages, women and children, and even some of the elders were taken when he had first come. But that was a long time ago, and until now the fear for him had almost vanished. But now, as Yuffie watched the angelic man scream something about his mother high above the shrine, it suddenly became clear to her.

"I don't think my home is safe anymore..." She murmured.

Vincent couldn't help but notice Yuffie's stiff motions as she led him through the village. He himself could not complain, following after her but never letting the sight of Sephiroth's aloft form leave his peripheral vision.

That animalistic scream echoed within his head, long after it left the one-winged angel's lips.

_We are both monsters...'_ He couldn't help thinking as he descreetly watched Sephiroth.

_'We do not belong here...abominations of nature...'_

His thoughts were headed in their usual morbid and depressing direction. Even Yuffie's attempts at maintaining a cheerful face failed.   
Vincent heard her soft, muttered words and silently agreed, wholeheartedly with her prediction.

"...I do not think it ever was..."

Suddenly becoming fearful, the young ninja looked over to Vincent, desperately trying to hide her fear from him.

"We...we'd better get you to Neerija...there might not be much time left to do so now..." She took him by the hand (not noticing that her hands had grown ice cold from the fear of the situation) and continued leading him toward the hut. As they approached the large tabby cat sitting atop the house opened one eye, yawned widely, stretched it's huge body, and hopped down from the house with grace. With a swish of it's long tail it walked on in front of the two inside of the home.

* * *


	7. Killing

**The Black Threads of Fate **

**Chapter 7: Killing **

The one winged angel rocketed through the air at supersonic speeds the wind creating frost on his silvery hair and trench coat. As he neared Wutai he sensed Vincent and sent a psychic burst of energy that would have knocked out any mortal but knew that it would simply alert Vincent to his arrival.

'_It is fitting that the servants should know when the master arrives…'_ he thought to himself. He stopped suddenly, the change in speed producing a sonic boom, he looked around the area as he looked down to find that girl and Vincent.

'_Yes...the Wutai do know how to fight...she could be an asset...if only for temporarily..…' _ he found his mind slipping into the gutter

'_Get your mind out of there Sephiroth...Am I really that desperate?' _ he asked himself still hovering in air

'_Has it been so long since I looked upon someone with care? Has it been so long since I have felt anything?' _he pushed those thoughts aside

'_...plus for me to even consider taking a mate, she would have to be at least 1/2 Cetra.…'_ he thought as he descended slowly, majestically, and deadly in front of Yuffie and Vincent. He felt the girl run into his toned chest and bounce off. Sephiroth achieved an almost impossible feat by rolling his eyes, catching the girl and standing her back up in the same motion.

"Watch where you are going girl...someone less forgiving might make you pay for it..." he said softly as his bright green eyes stared into her eyes casting their spell. He moved a silvery lock from his face gracefully then broke eye contact and moved to talk to Vincent

"Vincent...I have need of you...before your primary mission...you must meet me at the edges of Midgar...we shall destroy it...I expect you to be strong enough to do what needs to be done..." he looked at Vincent expectantly waiting to hear his response.

* * *

Yuffie stood there in a daze, confused as to what had just happend.

'_Damn...he showed up again and I ran right into him...I'm getting too clumsy all of a sudden.'_ She overheard Sephiroth's comments about Midgar and looked up, staring at him in anger. She had been to the city many times before, and although she knew it was destroying the planet with it's lifestream use a large quantity of the people were good hearted: They didn't deserve to die.

"If you destroy that city then thousands of people will die! You can't do that!" She shouted. She didn't care how cold or dark Sephiroth was: She'd do anything to keep decent people from getting hurt. No one deserved to die just because one major corporation rooted in a city was destroying everything.

Her new burst of determination to save the humans put Yuffie into a new light for Vincent.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'_Silly girl, bravery, yes, but Sephiroth is not one who will casually argue with you. He would rather slice you in two…'_  
On the topic of Midgar, however, he truly did not care either way; if the people died, he would get a little practice and if they did not, then the world continued to slowly die, inevitably decreasing their life spans.  
Either way, the humans die.  
Vincent lightly gripped Yuffie's shoulder(which, being not entirely human, made his group quite strong) and pulled her back, away from Sephiroth and next to himself. Yuffie, now relatively safer from any impulse Sephiroth could act on, Vincent took a few steps closer to the silver-haired, fallen angel. The metal of his boots was hushed by the ground beneath his feet, making his movements seem even more eerie than usual.

"I have been getting a bit rusty, I _am_ in need of the practice."

Sephiroth's lips peeled back into a smile

"Excellent my friend, will your..." he motioned with his head towards Yuffie

"..girl be coming? if so I expect her to know her place and to not get in the way..." he said honestly while thinking

'_Though it would be a shame to spill blood so young...especially when she could have her future uses…' _he chuckled to himself

'_I really am becoming too much like mother.'_ he thought. He put a gloved hand on Vincent's shoulder and smiled

"You're more of a warrior than I remember, I value your help Vincent...if you need any equipment...I am sure my old stash would be of use to you and your girlfriend over there." he said laughing a little. Then he moved past Vincent to look Yuffie in the eyes as his expression softened a little

"Do not fret girl, your village is safe...the Wutai have always had a code of honor that I have always treasured..." he held up his gloved hand and took off his left glove revealing a Wutai tatoo that meant Caged Dragon though Sephiroth didn't know that.

"A Wutai warrior gave this to me when I spared this village...so do not think me so cold as to slaughter those with honor..." he put a gloved hand on her head and ruffled her hair lightly

"As long as you stay on my good side you won't have to meet my soul mate...Masamune..." The deadly sword always hung at his belt, long, graceful and deadly just like it's master. He turned to Yuffie and Vincent after stepping back a couple of steps.

"So then, are you ready?"

Yuffie stared wide-eyed at Vincent, her mouth agape in shock.

'_He's siding with that horrible man!? How could he do such a terrible thing!?'_ She gritted her teeth and watched Vincent angrily. She thought he was a nice man, but judging by what's going on now she determined that it was all one big lie. Vincent was an evil man just like Sephiroth, and they were going to cause nothing but destruction. She thought of taking out her shuriken...but then her eyes darted to the Masamune. The huge weapon had killed hundreds of people in the past: She had even vaguely seen it in use before. She realized that she could do nothing anymore. She was just a pawn, and it would be impossible for her to stop whatever the two were planning: She was only one person, and she was much to weak to be a formidable enemy to the two men. All she could do was clench her fists and grit her teeth as she watched the two speak.

Vincent did not fail to hear the tone in which Sephiroth said 'girlfriend', nor did he fail to see the look of disgust on Yuffie's face.

'_The girl is finally seeing me for the monster I am, eh? She will be safer that way.'_  
Hearing Sephiroth speak of weapons and secret stash, Vincent proceeded to pull out his own, the one thing in his life he truly knew and understood, his Death Penalty.

"I have my own means." He said curtly, trying to avoid any questions about ammo or his transformations.

"Sephiroth, Cloud is in Midgar. With AVALANCHE."

'_Cloud…'_ the name seemed to stick out in Yuffie's head for some reason. She remembered hearing a name like that before: Something about a rogue member of SOLDIER leaving Midgar to do something else or something along those lines. She wasn't the kind of person who read many things (after all she was too busy "hunting" materia) so she wasn't exactly sure whether or not the image in her mind was true. Either way, he seemed important.

Yuffie heard a squeak come out of her mouth.

"Are you going to kill him?" She heard the question before she realized it was her who was speaking it. She stepped back a little bit, unsure of whether or not the two men would try to kill her. Without realizing it, being friendly with Vincent had gotten her into deeper hot water than she could imagine, and she wasn't about to take any chances now that she realized it was happening.

"I have no intention of killing him. He is like me."  
Vincent regretted having to intentionally distance himself from Yuffie; she seemed like a nice girl, but just speaking with Sephiroth and himself could get her into more trouble than she could ever conceive.   
Hearing Yuffie's comment about Cloud being an ex-SOLDIER, his hope for answers grew. Cloud was once involved with Shinra and he himself had been experimented on, meaning he would at least be privy to more information than he was.

"He is a monster like I am." He muttered under his breath.  
Now all he cared about was finding Cloud and getting the information he knew before Sephiroth could instruct him otherwise, so Vincent would be forced to be a pawn for Sephiroth, that is, if he wanted the answers he so vehemently sought.


	8. Ode to Power

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 8: Ode to Power**

****

****

Yuffie only nodded and looked over to Sephiroth.

"But what about him? Will HE kill him?" She didn't want to sound like a nuisance, but she couldn't trust Vincent and certainly not Sephiroth. They were her enemies, but she was stuck in their loop now and she could do nothing about that. She kept glancing over to the Masamune: Even kept within its sheath the formidable weapon sent shivers down the girl's spine. She didn't care if Vincent and Sephiroth noticed or not. She had a right to be afraid. Then again, she had a weapon of her own, too. She reached behind her back and brushed a hand over one of the edges of her giant shuriken attentively as she kept her focus on the two men in front of her. If they decided to try anything on her, she'd give it her all to keep them at bay.

Sephiroth shook his head and chuckled

"No girl, I wont be killing him. Why would I kill a brother of mine?" he asked.

"He is merely a pawn in my game, he carries the same cells that I do yet he behaves differently and is less powerful than I...yet he is my kin so I cannot touch him. I am only interested in getting him to our reunion with Mother." he said softly as his features softened, not looking so evil or sinister almost like a lonely child...with a giant sword...a scars so deep no person could hope to heal them...and he had seen so much that no person should ever have to see...but other than those features... a child. He hardened his expression to get it back to normal once he figured out it had softened

"Vincent are you bringing your girlfriend or not? I dont have all day, I still have other places to be and things to see through before the destruction of Midgar." The wind blew slightly making his hair dance slightly in the wind and the sun shone on his face making it more fair and irresistable than ever. Then a cloud came and covered the sun, which seemed to darken his face to make it look more intense and powerful. So many currents ran through Sephiroth yet all were him and he was them as well. His mind started to wander as he waited for Vincent to respond.

'_Perhaps I do need a girl...Vincent seems effected by her...soothed...somewhat...perhaps I am missing out on something...no...it couldnt be…'_

Vincent gave his usual gallic shrug.

"Being that Yuffie Kisaragi is not my girlfriend, I suggest you ask her yourself, Sephiroth. And Cloud Strife may be your kin but he has no blood ties to me. If I find that his ties with Shinra are still in existence, he will be no more."

'_I cannot believe I have just said that...those forbidden words have passed my lips and I meant them...Shinra must pay the price for its crimes. They will pay.'_  
Noticing her fingering her rather large shuriken on her back, Vincent directed his full attention to the scantily clad girl.

"Do not do that. I would like to think of us as friends, but I will not hesitate if you pull that out." He said calmly, almost nonchalantly, but his eyes betrayed his emotions. His crimson eyes shone brightly with a mix of regret and danger. He spoke true. He would carry out his threat if need be, but he would not enjoy doing it.  
Destroying Shinra, however, was another story. He would be laughing cruelly(on the inside, that is) as they fell.  
Vincent swatted a bit of ebony hair out of his face, his eyes perfectly visible. He gazed intensilly down at Yuffie, awaiting her answer and reply.

Yuffie sighed, removing her hand from the shuriken on her back.

"Fine. I will go with you." She said, knowing that there was little other choice for her. She only wanted to keep Sephiroth away from her people, and this seemed like the simplest way to do so. Straightening herself, the fire in her eyes seemed to glow with more intensity.

"But when we get to Midgar I won't help you destroy the city. I hate Midgar as much as any other person, but I won't kill innocent people just because their home is such a terrible place."

Sephiroth shrugged.

"Vincent you're going soft..." he said as looked Vincent in the eyes, his bright green mako eyes seeming to burn through every layer of defence Vincent had.

"She makes you weak...but it can be accepted for the time being..." he turned on his heels and started walking out of Wutai.

"Follow me then...the road is long and trecherous...unfortunatley you will not be able to fly with me...so we much walk...hopefully we will meet some ally on the road to help Balance this company out more" he smirked.

'_Perhaps I shall meet a young Cetra...or maybe...at least an attractive halfling...grr...get my mind out of this gutter...I dont need anyone...' _Sephiroth tried to convince himself but then found it to be useless.

'_Damn it...I still feel...I still have weakness...'_ he thought sadly as he started down the road with Yuffie and Vincent behind him.

The corners of Vincent's mouth twitched, almost forming a smirk.

'_Oh, you have no idea...I have not gotten soft at all...'_  
Staring ahead of him, Vincent contemplated unleashing his Chaos form. It would certainly allow him to move faster. If not that, he could always travel by his usual means, flitting rapidly through the air. Of course, the less Sephiroth knew of him, the better. It was better for him to not know of any of his particular talents, allowing him to have at least a few secrets of his own.  
Vincent laughed in his head.

'_If he only knew what I can become when angered...then again, it is Sephiroth. He fears nothing...but perhaps he should begin...'_

"You and I can reach Midgar in a minimal amount of time, but the girl cannot. If we leave her, she will warn the city of your plan." Vincent said simply, addressing Sephiroth. He knew that she would attempt to save the people of Midgar. Personally, Vincent felt nothing for them. He had lost his ability to feel for another being long ago. Compassion was not something he remembered. To him, the people of Midgar were fated to die. They lived in the abomination of a city, knowing full well that the energy they use is killing the earth.  
If they deserved any compassion, didn't the earth? Didn't he?  
When he was trapped, being horribly experimented on, no one felt compassion for him. He was left alone to be turned into a monster.  
Humans knew he was different. If they could not show him any compassion, why show them any?  
It was time they learned that their actions _do_ have consequences


	9. Sparkling Insights

**Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 9: Sparkling Insights**

Sephiroth's thoughts immediately broke into Vincents as an icy cold bubble in Vincent's head.

'_My thoughts exactly...' _ he psychically transmitted into the darker man's head.

He continued onward.

"Let the girl come...its time she saw what Midgar does to people...then she might change her tune..." he said seriously...but then again he WAS Sephiroth after all, when was he not serious? His face portrayed a stony stare ahead as all the monsters that normally would have attacked them cowered in fear at his aura.

"Yuffie...that is your name isn't it girl?" he asked in a bored tone,

"Care to entertain us with some of the legendary Wutai fables or tales of war as we walk?" he asked monotonously, yet deeply craving a well-told story...he always did love a good story.

"Or has the tradition of passing down one's accomplishments on the battle field died down since the war?" he asked Yuffie curiously, leaving Vincent to stew in his own thoughts.

"My parents died in the last war." Yuffie said simply.

"They were killed in the line of duty, and I was pretty much left alone. I don't have any stories. Sorry." She watched Sephiroth with an expressionless face, wondering if such a horrible person could ever care. Of course he couldn't care...he was Sephiroth! Sighing, she pulled her hands behind her head and stared up at the clear blue sky. With whatever Sephiroth and Vincent were planning, she wondered if she'd ever see a bright blue sky again...

Sephiroth nodded.

"Honorable deaths..." he said truthfully.

"Then perhaps you would entertain yourself with this..." he reached into his trench coat and produced a medium sized glittering blue orb. He tossed it to her casually,

"Take a look at it...I cultured it myself...

"Id like to hear your critiques on it's health; after all, the Wutai are renown materia appraisers." he said, smirking a little, incidentally shedding some of the Sephiroth illusion, if only a fraction.

The girl had nothing to complain about, at least, in Vincent's eyes she didn't.

She had a nice home, memories, parents she could actually remember, and her humanity. What more did she need?

"At least you still remember your family." He muttered under his breath, not wanting any to hear. He hated the fact that he knew nothing of himself, not even the most simplest of things. Not even his own birth-date or place of birth.

He had no home, no caring village to go back to.

Yuffie, however, had all of this and more.

She had no right to complain about her life.

She was not under Hojo's mercy for years.

She was not a product of twisted experimentation.

No, she was just an average girl from Wutai who had suffered losses during the war.

She was not unlike the thousands of other unfortunates who had lost loved ones.

She at least had the luxury of _remembering_ them.

Yuffie caught the glittering orb and stared at it, her eyes widening as she inspected the Materia from every possible angle.

"This...this is flawless..." She squeaked as she looked it over.

"I've seen a lot of materia, but never anything this nice! It must be worth millions!" She looked at him in awe as she regretfully returned the man his Bolt Materia.

"It's...it's perfect...but that's impossible. Every materia form has some kind of flaw one way or another...something that good just isn't natural. What did you do to it?" She continued to stare, desperately wanting to know just how he could ever manage to find such a good piece of Materia.

"If he told you, he would have to kill you." Vincent took the liberty of answering the girl's question. Obviously, she did not know Sephiroth's capabilities at all. He collected his own stash of perfect, MASTERED, materia.

It was just another part of Sephiroth...Or rather, another one of his many enigmas.

Sephiroth smirked.

"I formed it from the life stream myself." he said softly

"I made this and then trained it during the war...I have more...here...keep it..." he tossed it to her casually,

"I can always make more, not that I need it. I have knowledge of this planet that even the Ancients didn't; I don't need materia to use magic, but I'll save my ramblings on how the Life stream works for someone whose interested." he said softly, not even fully concentrating as he willed the lightning to his hands, forming a ball with it. He turned and shot it at a tree, exploding into a shower of sparks and flayed wood.

"Simple really...but keep that materia. Do what you wish with it; it should split into two materia soon and you can train its spawn for yourself if you want and sell the original. Whatever you wish." he said, truly unaffected by the loss of the materia.

"Wow..." she was almost speechless as she pocketed the glittering orb.

"Thanks, I guess..."

She continued watching him, confused and perturbed that such a man could ever exist.

_'He's so...perfect...'_ she thought to herself.

_'He might need a bit of an attitude adjustment and a couple friends...but strength, looks, and intelligence-wise...I suppose that's why people say he isn't human then.'_

As she continued thinking, another question popped into Yuffie's mind. A good one, but she was almost afraid to ask it. All the same, she gathered her courage and opened her mouth to speak to the intimidating man walking next to her.

"Why are you being so nice to me?" She asked him.

"I mean, you could just whip out a blade and dice me anytime you wanted...but you let me live and walk with me to wherever we're going rather than killing me and running off to get things done faster. Why is that?"

_'No fun at all...It would be more interesting to keep her wondering...'_ Vincent thought sardonically, a rare, yet mischievous cheschire like smirk crossing his features.

"He needs your help for his reunion. He is gathering those whom he shares cells with...hence, the reason he needs help."

The dark brooding man replied, answering Yuffie's question in a few short words.

"I am along for the ride as well as you. Hope you are not squeemish, though. Be prepared for bloodshed."

Sephiroth laughed.

"Curt as always, Vincent." he said, shrugging.

"And to answer you, Yuffie, simply because strength is nothing special; anyone can have strength and **NO ONE** respects anyone just because of their strength...no...people respect wisdom...and wisdom is the ability to discern _when_ to use your strength and how much to use in the situation. I do not want to kill everyone, contrary to popular belief. I want this world to be reborn...and yes that will require some deaths, but I am prepared to do what is necessary for the greater good." he said philosophically.

"And on a softer note, feel free to look through my materia stash. I can't remember what is in there but it's all quite good I believe, at least as good as that bolt materia I gave you." with that said, he continued walking on as if there had not been a conversation occurring just seconds ago.


	10. Tainted

**Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 10: Tainted**

Vincent unconsciously shivered at the mention of materia. He didn't know why, but it just did not mix well with him.

It made him feel like a worm was crawling under his skin. The materia made him feel less in control of his power.

_Lifestream._

Maybe that was why the materia mixed badly with him, because it was directly from the lifestream.

Either way, it made him feel erratic and uncontrolled, making him despise the stuff even more.

"It is all yours, Yuffie. Bad reaction with it." Once more, he spoke curtly, avoiding having to explain his decline.

Yuffie sighed and said nothing. The prospect of looking at tons of top-quality materia was tempting, but walking between her cynical new friend and the most dangerous man on the planet seemed to cut away at the wonderful prospect of doing her favorite pastime without any repercussions. She looked over at Vincent and frowned, noticing he seemed to have a grimace of some sort on his face. She didn't understand why though; All they were doing was having a simple discussion about Materia...

'_That's it...he must not like Materia for some reason...'_ Swallowing, she gathered her courage and decided to ask the question despite the fact that her curiosity only made her sound more and more like a naive child.

"How come you don't like Materia?"

He knew it.

He just knew she would ask him that question.

He merely hoped that it would occur later.

However, she was more astute than she appeared and had picked up on his obvious distaste.

"It is personal." That was all he said. Vincent had no desire to explain the circumstances of his existence to her. He did not even understand why his body rejected the materia, so how could he possibly explain it to someone else, especially someone as innocent as Yuffie.

"You can look through it. Do not let my aversion inhibit you."

Vincent wasn't quite sure why he added the last bit; it just seemed somehow wrong to allow his own distaste to stop her from the task she so obviously wanted to do.

Sephiroth chuckled to himself.

"Lifestream get 'under your skin' Vincent?" he asked showing his grasp of the situation.

'_Hojo must have put him through some of the same tests as I...that brilliant...yet evil man...'_

Yuffie raised a brow at Vincent, unsure of what he was trying to say.

"Look through what? I understand how some people are with Materia...a lot of folks just don't like working with magic. That's understandable. I mean, I've seen some people go power-hungry with materia...they don't look so good when they overdo it with those things. Then again those people are the ignorant ones who think they'll become immortal if they have enough materia plugged into their weapons and armor at all times. They're just crazy if you ask me." She laughed.

"Of course you aren't crazy...I mean, I think it's the smart thing to do to choose not to use it."

Vincent chuckled suddenly. It was a strange, alien sound, even to him.

Him afraid of magic? What was this girl playing at?

"No, I am not afraid of magic. I cannot use materia. My body rejects it. And as for magic..."

Vincent uncovered his left arm and held it aloft in front of Yuffie. Even though it was plated with metal, any person with a brain could tell that his arm was not that of a human.

The corners of his mouth upturned into a slight smirk.

"Now do you understand?"

Sephiroth looked over his shoulder slightly.

'_He's becoming close with her; This could present a problem. I cannot have his loyalty to me questioned, not now. I shall have to accelerate my plans with the Yuffie girl; I must turn her to my side. That way Vincent will forever remain true to the Path...'_ Sephiroth stopped and turned around slowly.

"Vincent...you say your body rejects materia?" he reached into his sack of materia and produced a white piece of materia. He raised it in his hand as it let out a bright white light.

"Yuffie, let me show you why he hates Materia." his eyes softened.

"Im sorry, Vincent, but you must learn to overcome your weakness if you travel with me. Magic is a common form of attack, and I cannot have you vulnerable to it..." his black energy activated the materia as a stream of white dust enveloped Vincent's form as Sephiroth slowly uttered a word.

"Life 3..." the white dust turned into white energy that sunk into Vincent's form, its life energy reacting with his undead side. Sephiroth watched as Vincent collapsed on the ground writhing in agony.

"Im sorry, friend...but we must build up your resistance..." he cut off the MASTERED life materia's blast and put it back into his materia sack.

"Carry him." he said to Yuffie.

"And tell me when he is awake. Then I will blast him again, and again, and again, until he does not pass out from it." Sephiroth continued to walk, casually tossing Yuffie a strength talisman.

"Put this on; it should boost your muscles enough to the point that it isn't a burden to carry him...and yet you will still gain strength. Come now Yuffie; onward.." he started walking again.

Yuffie stood there, speechless over what had just happened. She stared down at the talisman in her hand for a moment, then glanced over to Vincent's unconscious form. I can't believe he just did that to him, without warning like that. She knew this wasn't a time for anger and distaste. That could wait for later. She quickly put the glittering trinket on around her neck and picked Vincent up, carrying him on her back almost effortlessly. She knew this wasn't right. Torture like this would only kill Vincent after enough times: It was no better than what Hojo used to do to animals all the time.

'_Please don't wake up Vincent...'_ she thought pleadingly.

'_You don't deserve to be hurt anymore.'_ sighing, she stayed careful with the new burden on her back, following Sephiroth only a few steps behind.


	11. Blasted Memories

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 11: Blasted Memories**

'_Where am I?'_

Vincent slowly opened his eyes, only to be greeted with a wave of bright sunlight.

"Sun...ouch..."

He realized suddenly that he was being carried by the small girl he had met earlier.

"Yuffie, I am fine now. Let me down. And yes, I am aware he will do it again."

Cruel and unusual it may seem, Sephiroth was right. Blasting him with materia was the quickest way for him to build up an immunity.

He _had_ to.

The materia contained more life than he did so it reacted horribly with his undead side. With a weakness of that magnitude, he had to build up an immunity or he would be useless in a battle.

Cruel, arrogant, cold, and temperamental, Sephiroth, against popular opinion, was an honorable man. It was one of the few things he actually did remember of his past.

"I said let me down, Yuffie. I meant now."

Sephiroth shook his head slowly.

"Don't bother, Yuffie.." he turned around holding the giant white orb. It started to glow again, zapping him with its life energy, making him scream in pain and finally pass out again. The wind blew softly against Sephiroth, blowing some of his long silvery hair into his face.

"Yuffie..." he said softly barely above a whisper.

"Think me a monster, fear me, hate me, think whatever you wish about me...it is of no concern to me..." he said as he turned around starting to walk again.

'_Go ahead, you wont be doing anything different than anyone else...this needs to be done...'_

Yuffie sighed, staring at Sephiroth's long silver locks in front of her.

"I don't truly hate you, Sephiroth. You spared my village, and I respect you for that. It's just..." She looked back at Vincent's unconscious form.

"...Is it truly necessary to hurt him like this? I understand why you're doing it...but shouldn't there be an easier way?" She felt foolish for asking such a silly question to such a formidable man. She already had a good idea of what the answer would be, too. Still, somehow she wanted Sephiroth to learn something about compassion: Maybe then she could show him that it's okay not to be so cruel at times.

Sephiroth shook his head.

"There might be an easier way but not a more effective way, the other ways are going to be only temporary, and I am interested in Vincent's well being for the moment. You are not a SOLDIER; you do not know what discipline is instilled in us. Vincent knows what I'm doing, he also knows that we underwent worse during our careers in SOLDIER and the Turks, respectively." he said honestly.

"Just carry him now, and soon, when you need it, he will carry you effortlessly." Sephiroth stopped talking now and kept walking, immersed in his own thoughts on SOLDIER and JENOVA.

Yuffie sighed in aggravation.

"Yeah, maybe you're right. This might be for the best for him. But I'd like you to keep in mind not to underestimate me, either. I might not be a SOLDIER, but I _AM_ a ninja. I have discipline and morals too, you know." She looked down and kicked at a rock that was on the ground in front of her as they walked.

"Where exactly are we going, anyway?"

Flashback

_Since Grimoire, his father, died, he had been searching for Lucretia Crescent. He was in love with the odd woman, a scientist for Shinra. Being a Turk, he only saw her on rare occasions._

_Finally, finding her again after being assigned to oversee her protection, he spilled his love out to her. She rejected his initial offer of a public relationship due to her feelings of guilt about his father's death, but still they grew close as time passed._

_Vincent watched as the love of his life experimented with mako and other odd things. He watched as the relationship between her and Hojo developed, or at least on the surface seemed so. _

_A few days after they had announced their 'relationship' officially, she was found pregnant, which logically made it impossible for the child to be Hojo's, but still they kept up that facade. Immediately, she offered herself to be a test subject. Her unborn child would test the effect Jenova's cells had on life. _

_The child would be the ultimate guinia pig._

_"This is wrong. Human test subjects? It is inhumane and dangerous! Do you even know the risks of these experiments?" He argued, trying to get the two scientists to change their minds. Before he knew it, he heard a gun fired, and then nothing. Everything around him began to dim. _

End Flashback

Vincent snapped his eyes open, thankful to be away from that horrible place again.

'_Was that just...a ...memory?'_

As much as the memory intrigued him, he wouldn't risk reliving the end, reliving his obvious death.

Once more, Yuffie was carrying him. He knew Sephiroth intended to blast him again, so why prolong the inevitable?

"Sephiroth, I am awake. If you intend on blasting me, you may do so now." he said, nonchalantly.

He had already gritted his teeth, preparing for the now-familiar pain of the materia.


	12. Realizations

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 12: Realizations**

Sephiroth half smiled, casually sending another blast of White Lightning at his friend. After Vincent's shrieks of agony faded, Sephiroth finally decided to grant Yuffie a reply.

"We're going to Midgar, remember...but best to stop here for the night. After all, you and Vincent need sleep." he said as he unpacked a tent from his backpack and set up the other two tents along with his own under a willow tree off to the side of the path.

"I'm going to go get us dinner. I will be back soon."

He was gone in a literal blink of the eye without so much as a whisper.

Hanging on to his consciousness by a thread, Vincent bit down on Yuffie's arm, causing her to unceremoniously drop him on the ground.

Although he managed to not pass out, the materia blast had brought on more fragments of memories. The new information was causing his head to pound in utter protest. He subconsciously brought his hands to his temples, trying futily to block out the replaying snatches of memory.

"Lucretia....Sephiroth....Hojo....Jenova.....dead...." He murmured incoherently to himself.

It was too much for his mind to handle.

"Sephiroth, help me..." He whispered, barely audible.

_________________________________________________

Sephiroth rushed along the tree branches, snagging various animals that he remembered how to cook. The fading sunlight glinted off his wildly dancing silver hair, making him look gloriously inhuman in the sunset. He sighed and closed his eyes.

'_This is magnificent. I love this feeling...the freedom, the power, and the...solitude.' _he thought as he jumped up against the sunset, the glare of the red and purple colors made him appear a shadow of black as he landed gracefully in front of Yuffie and Vincent.

Without a word he looked to the small fire pit he had made and his eyes sharpened as flame burst from nothingness to form warm dry comforting heat.

'_No one shall know...the real me. No one shall ever know Sephiroth.' _he thought to himself as he skewered the bits of animals on wooden spits and held them over the fire with telekinesis. He turned to Vincent's crumpled form,

"Sorry old friend, but if you wish to travel with me, you need to be strong enough to make it through war without me." he said, hoping Vincent would catch the hint from their past.

He turned his back on Vincent and sat by the fire warming himself alone.

"Too much...child...Lucretia...experiments..._Sephiroth_...." Vincent continued to randomly squeeze out words through his gritted teeth. He couldn't stop the memory from playing in his head. He let out a scream, sounding more animalistic than anything human.

Attempting to stop the memories from overwhelming him, he began slamming his head against the ground.

He wouldn't lose control.

At all costs, he _could_ _not_ lose control.

Sephiroth shot Vincent a glare that carried with it so much force that it had once successfully stopped a Red Dragon in its tracks.

"Shut up, and deal with the pain" he said as he turned back to his meal.

A few moments later, the pain abruptly stopped. Vincent looked up from his position on the ground and stared at Sephiroth with glowing crimson eyes.

"It was you. You were the child they used for experimentation with Jenova's cells. The child that inevitably led to my murder." He spoke coldly, a new edge to his voice that was not present before.

"Because of your parents, I am an abomination to nature. Because of them, you yourself were denied the life you were meant to have."

His tone remained even, monotone even. He stood without trouble, and faced Sephiroth.

Bright green eyes met his own crimson ones.

If Sephiroth _could_ ever fully smile, this would be the closest thing to it.

"Good Vincent, good." He rose and pushed Vincent slightly.

"Go and let out your anger, then come back to me and we shall battle...as friends..."

He grasped Vincent's hand and shook it firmly.

"As comrades."

Yuffie stared at the two of them, more confused than ever before.

'_What the hell? These guys just keep getting weirder and weirder.' _

She sighed and looked at the animal on the skewer that was meant to be her meal. She was grateful for the offering, but with Vincent and Sephiroth acting so strange, she suddenly didn't feel very hungry. "I wish you guys would stop it..." She muttered softly.

"Your fighting is foolish; You should be saving your strength for a later time when you need it."

She laid down on the grass, turning away from the fire so that her back was warmed by the burning light. She tried to sleep, but suddenly sleeping was more difficult than it ever normally was. Maybe it was the prospect of leaving home without saying goodbye that bothered her. Maybe it was the fact that she felt bad for Vincent and what he'd been through. All the same she knew only one thing: Her two new comrades were the reason she was so troubled suddenly.

Vincent accepted Sephiroth's advice, or would one call it a command? He slowly walked away from the area they had claimed as their camp ground, hoping to find some poor innocent soul to take his anger out on.

He wasn't bothered by it.

After all, who in this world could truly claim innocence?


	13. Convictions

The Black Threads of Fate

Chapter 13: Convictions

Hours passed before Vincent arrived back at the makeshift campsite. A slight smile formed on his face, an unnerving and rare sight.

Yuffie still lay reclined on the grass, most likely thinking about everything that had just occurred to her within the past day.

His crimson eyes strayed over to the Silver-haired ex-soldier.

Could he truly battle a man he had known even before his birth? It seemed relatively wrong to him, but he himself was an ex-SOLDIER as well, so it would be a wonderful chance at practice.

Besides, this was Sephiroth's idea and if he wanted a fight, why deny him?

"Sephiroth, I am back."

Sephiroth immediately jumped into the air, a swirling ball of silver energy in hand.

"Prepare yourself!" he said as he hurled the ball at Vincent, disappearing in thin air immediately after it left his fingertips.

He had not even bothered to draw his sword yet.

He flipped up higher into the air, pointing his hands together in a cup-like fashion at his side. Swirling bolts of lightning started to appear in his hands, merging into an orb.

Sephiroth quickly moved behind Vincent, shoving the highly pressurized ball of electricity into Vincent's back, the force of which would have torn any normal human apart limb from limb.

_'Best to test his strength first.' _Sephiroth thought, smirking to himself

The electricity that would have killed an average human being had the exact opposite effect on his comrade. Vincent squelched the part of him that was reacted, the part of him that was responsible for his metamorphosis. He could hear Chaos' voice within his head, telling him he should allow himself the joy of watching Sephiroth suffer.

_'No. It is not human...'_

**_But you are not human, Vincent._**

Fighting to retain even the small hold he had on his control, the demons warring inside of him eventually won in the end, the strength needed to keep them at bay eluding him.

For once, he didn't have to completely switch forms to use the demon's attacks. This time, probably due to the electrical shocks Sephiroth had sent coursing through his body, rapidly firing his nerves in succession, he only gained the claws, horns, and fangs of his alternate forms.

Without a second thought, Vincent jumped out of Sephiroth's path. Giving him no time to start another assault on him, Vincent sprang into action, claws fully extended, and clawed mercilessly into Sephiroth's exposed stomach.

__________________________________________________

Yuffie awoke with a start, jolting upright and spinning around to face the smoldering coals left of the fire that had warmed her before. She could hear little except some sort of blasts, a shriek, and the distinct noise of some kind of animal clawing deep into it's prey.

Scrambling to her feet, she looked around in search of whatever was causing the noise, as well as attempting to locate her comrades, for they had seemed to have disappeared sometime while she slept. Alas, it was darker than most nights: Now that the fire was nothing left but reddish ashes, there was little light to show her where they had run off to.

"Sephiroth? Vincent?" She asked nervously into the darkness.

She shivered, suddenly realizing how cold the dark had suddenly made the forest.

"Vincent! Sephiroth! Where are you!?" Seeing no other alternative, she began a blind search for the two men, feeling outward to avoid any trees, bushes, or brambles she may have passed along the way. She may have been blind from the night, but there was one thing that DID guide her: The noise from whatever creature was ahead.

____________________________________________________

Sephiroth would have been surprised at the current situation if only it weren't his intentions all along. Sephiroth's amazing reflexes kicked in, allowing him to dodge just in time to have his stomach only lightly grazed by the offending claws, rather than being eviscerated by them. Sephiroth smirked, despite only narrowly escaping the attack. Ignoring the close call, he gracefully did a 360 degree spin in the air, allowing him to position himself behind Vincent before he had time to deliver another blow. Before Vincent could react, Sephiroth quickly circled the other man and grabbed his shoulders, using then to balance himself as he delivered a stunning knee to Vincen't stomach. He followed that up with an overhead blow that involved him removing his hands from Vincent's shoulders to clench them into fists together above the man's head, heavily bringing them down upon the already dazed Vincent's dark head.

_'So this is what Hojo spawned after my conception. I suppose he never gets tired of playing with fire.' _He thought, mildly amused by the fact that Hojo had unwillingly created another being who was not as obedient as he had desired.

Sephiroth jumped onto Vincent's back, using it as leverage to spring an extra twenty feet into the air, where he produced a ball of fire in his hands, a genuine smile on his face. The rumors were true about him; the only time Sephiroth smiled was in the heat of battle. He had no reason to smile otherwise, nothing else he could truly enjoy. The ball of embers lit up Sephiroth's fair skinned face the flickering flame casting it into sudden shadows every now and again causing his features to appear almost inhuman. His dark coat-like garment billowed dramatically in the wind, the waning moon overhead lending its pale glow only to produce a vision of death and angelic beauty all at once. He was an angel of death, indifferent to the pain and suffering around him as he had long since grown used to it, his beauty all that remained of his former naive self.

_**Kill him, Vincent. Destroy him.**_

On instinct alone, Vincent leaped after his prey. His human conscious was long since pushed into the back of his mind, overridden by the demons inside of him.

Animalistic instinct kicked in and Vincent leaped into the air, latching onto Sephiroth's back just as he had seen the other man do. Their sillouette's shown eerily against the close-to-full moon.

Digging his claws deep into the man's shoulders, he swiftly bit down into Sephiroth's neck. His fangs drew blood almost instantly, pulling him back into his own head slightly.

_'What am I doing?!'_

He instantly disengaged his fangs and claws. However, Chaos was not so easily satisfied.

The demons completely overrode his conscience once more.

He charged at the silver-haired man before him, his only thought on getting another taste of the Cetra's blood.

____________________________________________________

Yuffie finally came into a clearing of trees, her sight returned thanks to the sudden appearance of the moon. She would've smiled up at it in thanks had she not seen the two figures shadowed in front of it. The shadows didn't matter, however: There were only two other beings who looked remotely like humans around where they were, and they were also the only ones who could fly. She knew that the one with wings had to be Sephiroth, She could recognize that hair from a mile away.

The other one had to logically have been Vincent since he too was missing when she awoke, but he was different somehow. The one she knew wouldn't attack Sephiroth in such a viscious way.

"Vincent, what are you doing!?" Yuffie shouted.

"We're supposed to be friends! All three of us, meaning you two as well! You and Sephiroth have to stop fighting!"

Sephiroth's 'wounds' began to close, a slight green light being emit by his body as it used the lifestream to heal the damage done to his body. He grabbed Vincent's collar and flung him down. Propelling himself upward, he finally let the orb of flames he had been holding go towards Vincent. Afterwards, Sephiroth's body seemed to glow Mako green as he rocketed down upon the body of the fallen Vincent, tackling him to the ground as he did so. The ground shook at the collision as Sephiroth pulled up at the last minute, letting go of Vincent. Back-flipping, Sephiroth landed on the edge of the crater where a little drop of sweat lay upon his brow

"And that's why they call me the BEST SOLDIER there ever was." he whispered with satisfaction. A glowing orb of white energy appeared in his palm

Zapping Vincent with the usually deadly Lightning attack, he watched, waiting to see its effect on him. The white glow illuminated his face, a face that if anyone could see if from where he was cleverly positioned would have seen an emotion present that they never would have thought he possessed: regret, regret at having to treat the man he considered his friend like this.

________________________________________________

Yuffie quickly realized that neither man could hear her, leaving her to watch the quick end of the fight in silence. She couldn't believe that Sephiroth could make a comeback so easily. It's true...he really isn't human...neither of them are.. She thought with wonder as Sephiroth blasted Vincent with magic once again. She was saddened at first that her friend was to be driven unconscious once more by their emotionless comrade...before she saw the look on Sephiroth's face. She wasn't quite sure what exactly it was: Before she rarely saw anything more than a coy smirk or a harsh frown on the man's face. This expression was different...like compassion, if anything. Such compassion seemed to make

The white energy Sephiroth used on him had seaped into his body.

Vincent's back arched from the pain, feeling like he was being ripped in two. The effect was horrifying to the eye to see. His body began convulsing, his human body not being able to hold the energy any longer.

An inhuman scream tore from his lips, sounding like the cry of a wounded animal.

What seemed like hours later, the immediate pain subsided, leaving Vincent with dull aches. Suddenly, another scream tore through his throat. His body began convulsing once more but he was no longer able to think upon it. It was no longer his conscience inside himself. His form began morphing into that of Chaos, obviously not a happy little creature from being hit with lifestream.

_'I am going to be feeling this in the morning.' _Vincent thought morbidly, before the last wave of his consciousness was pulled to the back of his head, making way for the entity that usually resided within him.

On the ground no longer lay the frail appearing man known as Vincent but a winged demon with a horrible feral temper.

Through the eyes of Chaos, Vincent could see and hear Yuffie, but it was no longer his mind that held the reigns of control.

**"Girl, he can still hear you, though he cannot reply to your words.****" **An almost animalistic voice hissed in response to Yuffie's words.

Vincent knew this form would scare her, probably scarring her young, naive mind forever.

Not moving, fighting Chaos on the inside, he could feel its pull lessen.

Of, course, once Chaos sank back into the dark corners of his mind, he would begin to feel all of the pain Sephiroth's attacks had caused him.

The last attack Sephiroth had used began to slowly fade, and due to the fight occuring in Vincent's own head, he began morphing back into his own form.

" I hate when that happens...." Vincent spat out quietly before the wave of nausea hit him from the extent of injuries he had obtained from Sephiroth. The attack that had triggered his transformation was the one that had especially weakened him.

Vincent raised his arm weakly to Sephiroth, in order to shake his hand in acknowledgement.

"You have won this battle, Sephiroth. The victory is yours." Vincent commented, his voice retaining its cold tone. He sat up, futily hiding a wince of pain.

Yuffie sat there in astonishment, staring at Vincent with a mixture of fear and relief. What was that thing that had spoken to her just then? She wasn't sure, but it scared her more than anything.

"I'm glad you're okay, Vincent.." She forced a weak smile despite being shaken from the talk with his other form. She rose to her feet and brushed the leaves and pine needles from her pants before looking back up at the moon where Sephiroth still was. She couldn't believe he had put Vincent through such a horrible ordeal; She promised herself to have a talk with the man about it no matter how afraid she was.

Sephiroth finally saw fit to cease the lightning attack as he walked slowly to Vincent's side, only to stop, roughly grabbing his hand. He didn't shake it, though. Instead, he picked up Vincent's arm and placed it over his shoulders, around his neck. With that done, he helped lift the man to his feet and began to walk him out of the crater with a surprisingly gentle touch.

"You fared well for a Turk." he said as he set Vincent down.

"Rest up. Tomorrow we start travelling again, and you're going to need your strength." he said as he walked away from Vincent's cot. He looked up at the full moon and thought,

_'He is like me, a creature created of another matter. He, like I, does not belong on this earth. He is a good friend, and it has been all too long since I have had someone I could think of as such.' _

He jumped onto a low hanging tree branch and silently made his way higher, closer to the dense tree tops. He stood there, perfectly balanced on a thick branch, looking up at the moon.

_'It is a good thing I will not have to destroy him; It would be a shame to lose such unique talents to death.' _

A cold, harsh voice interrupted his thoughts, resounding angrily in his head.

**SON!!!! WHY HAVE YOU NOT FOUND YOUR BROTHERS YET?!?! WHY DOES THIS WORLD STILL STAND?!!?!? **

Sephiroth cringed and held his head in his hands.

"I..I am sorry, Mother. I need more time to complete your task. I fear they are too scattered across the lands to gather as quickly as you would like. Even with my power it is difficult to locate and keep up with all of them.".

He tried to point out but the voice continued on its tirade.

**I DO NOT WANT EXCUSES! I WANT RESULTS!!!**

Sephiroth nodded slowly.

"Yes mother. I am sorry to disappoint you. It will not happen again." The voice subsided, leaving Sephiroth mercifully alone with his thoughts. He straightened up, a sigh unwillingly escaping his lips.

_'I am running out of time...' _he thought silently as the cool breeze lightly pulled at his curiously silver hair, relieving some of his stress.

__________________________________________

Yuffie followed Sephiroth silently, gathering her courage as she went.

_'Come on, Yuff...' _She thought to herself.

_'Get it together...this guy won't hurt a Wutai.'_

She straightened herself and stared seriously at Sephiroth.

"You could've killed him." She said, a twinge of anger in her voice.

"You challenge him to a needless fight in the middle of the night and you blasted him with your magic until he turned into that..that...that merciless thing that could've killed us both if it wanted! Why? What's the point, huh!? What's the point of all this pain? If you keep blasting him until he turns into that, he won't build up any kind of immunity, you know. It'll only make that beast angrier and angrier until it decides to show no mercy towards either of us no matter what."

Sephiroth's thoughts were interrupted by a familiar Wutai female's voice. The silver-haired man opened his eyes slowly and sighed.

_'Just what I need; More criticism from the peanut gallery.'_ he thought to himself.

He noticed the voice went on and on about how he could do that to Vincent. Sephiroth back-flipped off the tree, landing gracefully behind Yuffie, so close to the young ninja that his breath fell intimately on her neck as he spoke coldly.

"Yuffie, don't you think that I deserve some sort of trust when I am dealing with a SOLDIER? What makes you question my methods? I am the best SOLDIER alive, I was toying with Vincent while he took the form of that beast."

Looking at her face, felt that she still held doubts, despite what he had just told her, so he elaborated.

"There is a reason why Vincent and I have survived so long, Yuffie, and it wasn't by giving in to our weaknesses. By exploiting them, I am preparing him for what others will do, because it is better to fall apart amongst friends than to do so in the eyes of the enemy. Meaning, if he has to get past this weakness, I would rather see him do so here than at the hands of our enemies. It is partially a matter of pride, in a sense. He understands that I do this to benefit him in the end. And you would do well to remember your place amongst our group; I am the one in charge, and I will not hesitate to kill you if you get in my way." Sephiroth paused in his explanation, not caring at this point if she understood or not because he was beginning to get frustrated at having to find a way to explain this to an outsider, one who had never been in an organization like SOLDIER or the Turks, where failure on a mission could be worse than death.

"You are just a girl. Please do not force me to do something I do not want to do. You make Vincent happy; I see that. I can see that he feels at peace, almost human when you are around. Perhaps you are just an understanding individual, and that is what he has been craving ever since the experiment and his loss of Lucretia. However, there is also the possibility that he feels a deeper connection with you." Sephiroth stopped, unsure if he really wanted to lose his only companion to this waif of a girl. With a quick nod, he dismissed those thoughts. No, Vincent was not like him; he deserved to feel peace.

"Stay here and look after him, understand him, and maybe, if you could find it in you., love him."

Sephiroth took a step back from Yuffie's back to where his breath couldn't be felt on her neck and turned away, but before he left, almost inaudible, he whispered,

"Love him Yuffie; Give my friend what I could never experience, give him someone who understands him. Heal his broken soul; it will be more than I ever had or will hope to experience. And more than anything, I wish that upon him, I wish him to be better than me." he said as he walked off into the woods, seeming to vanish into the darkness. With an ethereal green flame the campfire started again, roaring off of nothing as a silent silver-haired warrior watched from afar.

Yuffie stood there in shock, her mouth hung almost agape as she stared blankly at the greenish flames of the fire.

_'I'm going on a journey with a bunch of insane people...and if I'm not careful they'll kill me.' _She dropped to her knees and glanced over toward Vincent as he slept on the cot.

_'And now suddenly I'm someones protector. This is insane! What the hell am I doing with these people!?' _She sighed and sat cross-legged as she played with a stick off to her side, drawing random patterns in the dirt.

"Suddenly a little bit of adventure doesn't seem like fun anymore..." She murmured. In the beginning she thought it was all some kind of joke: A couple of crackpots trying to look scary with funny costumes and weapons wanting to do nothing more than have some pretend fun for kicks and giggles. Now that she'd spent almost 24 hours with them, she saw different.

_'They really are going to try to destroy Midgar...' _she realized, her head slumping low.

_'And I can't exactly do anything about it. I'm not blind; I saw how Sephiroth fought, and I am good, but even I know I'm not that good. Plus the fact that he put it bluntly that he would not hesitate to kill me if he felt the need. God, what have I gotten into this time!?' _

Suddenly Yuffie felt more tired and depressed than she had ever felt in her entire life. She laid down upon the grass and buried her head in her hands and slowly, eventually, fell asleep.


	14. Stranger in Arms

**The Black Threads of Fate**

**Chapter 14: Strangers in Arms**

Vincent heard the entire conversation between Yuffie and Sephiroth through sudden random bouts of consciousness.

_'Love...? I have only associated that word with one person...and look where it got me. Perhaps he is right, though. Somehow, I do feel more at peace around her. If she had never spoken, Chaos would have remained. Perhaps I owe Sephiroth for more than just sparing my life...'_

Vincent abruptly sat up in the cot noticing the dark twilight surrounding him.

_'How long was I out for?' _He looked around him and spotted a familiar bulge lying on the grass.

A faint smile crossed his features.

"Poor girl...fell asleep on the grass..."

He stood up, slightly shakily at first, and headed toward her. He gently picked her up, careful not to wake her, and placed her on the cot he had previously been using. Pulling the blanket over her small form, he left her side to keep guard in a nearby tree. Granted, he knew Sephiroth was bound to be nearby, he just felt safer watching from above himself. After all, even before the experiments, he never trusted anyone.....that is, except Lucretia.

_'Sephiroth is lonely. I can feel it from the tone of voice he used with Yuffie. One would never believe a being such as him would be able to feel such a thing, but he IS human at heart and all humans crave someone to understand them.'_

Vincent was uncertain whether Sephiroth had maintained any of his human emotion after coming in contact with Jenova, but the recent events proved that he still held some semblance of normal human emotion. It was simply that Jenova's influence had so greatly affected him that they were now warped far beyond recognition.

With that last thought, Vincent gracefully launched himself into a tree overlooking Yuffie and their campsite. If he looked out of his peripheral vision, he could see the land stretch miles before him. It was the perfect spot for him: secluded and a spectacular lookout point.

_'Who would make a perfect companion for Sephiroth?'_

_

* * *

  
_

Yuffie twisted beneath the blanket and yawned, opening one eye only to be confused with the fact that she was laying above the grass. Yawning again she sat up and felt the bed, realizing that someone had put her on the cot. Not only that, but Vincent was nowhere to be found.

_'What's with everybody disappearing all the time?' _She asked herself. Yawning again, she rose from the cot and stretched, taking in the morning smell of the forest. She always liked the forest in the mornings; it was as if nothing could hurt her as long as the sun was out.

Looking over at the fire she noticed that it was still burning; the green flames crackling high despite the fact that the wood fuel was long-since left to ash.

_'That's incredible! How anyone could manage to keep a flame going like that, it's just crazy!'_ She stared at it in wonder for a few more moments before realizing again that the others seemed to be missing.

_'Maybe they ran off to get food or something...'_

"Vincent! Sephiroth!" She called out into the morning mist.

"Where are you guys?"

* * *

A fragile looking girl stared down at the other female before her, the other appearing to most likely be from Wutai. The girl above smirked faintly, staring down at her prey.

_'I am beginning to think like an animal once more...'_

With that, she kicked of out of her perch in a nearby tree and landed softly behind the ninja. She crouched low on all fours and suddenly sprang onto the other girl's back, sending her to the ground.

"My, my; all alone out here in the wild? Your companions leave you all alone? Tsk Tsk Tsk." Liath snarled in the girl's face, not intending to sound mean or scare her. As she spoke, her fangs could be clearly seen in the increasing sunlight.

Rolling off the girl, Liath stood and brushed herself off.

"You ought to pay more attention to your surroundings girl. I could have bit your throat out before you even knew I was here." She said nonchalantly. Turning a crooked smile to the girl, she extended a semi-clawed hand to the girl she had playfully tackled.

Of course, most people didn't consider her type of playful to be playful at all; they took it as a threat.

Yuffie stepped back from the girl, unsure of whether to trust her.

_'Great, I just wake up and somebody's scolding me because my friends left.'_

"Just who the heck do you think you are?" She asked as she whipped out her shuriken.

"In case you haven't noticed I can kill you just as easy, too." She kept the shuriken raised in front of her, showing the strange woman that she meant business.

Liath laughed at the strange girl before her.

"I like you...You are funny...." She managed between breaths.

"You were so worried about your comrades when I jumped down that I could have eviscerated you by the time you noticed!"

Liath spotted the silver-haired man, or more so, smelled the food he had.

_'To ask or take? Hmm...'_

Her pupils shrunk, giving way to her more animalistic instincts.

"Willing to share?" She growled. She was trying very hard not to scare anyone but she couldn't help the way her voice sounded to people.

* * *

Sephiroth quietly walked out of the misty morning forest holding a sack of items over his back.

"I'm right here girl." he said in his usual direct manner as if nothing had happened last night.

"I've got breakfast." he said softly as he knelt down in front of the fire and started frying up some bacon and eggs. He was looking intently upon the eggs as if he had nothing better to think about.

_'Hmm...How long has it been since I hungered? Since I...since I...felt?'_ He asked himself as he stared into the fire, his mind off somewhere else as he pondered his questions. This was how the strange female found him, but uncharacteristically for him, rather than snap to attention and attack her for her intrusion, he remained lost in his own thoughts, ignoring the girl entirely until he deemed the conversation to have gone too far.

Yuffie sighed and put her weapon away.

_'I don't like this chick.'_ The girl was nothing more than a menace, in her opinion. She wasn't a Wutai, nor did she seem to be any type of warrior. She was a beast, and beasts were meant to be killed for good. She had a feeling Vince and Seph wouldn't feel the same, however, and instead of lunging for the girl she sat down beside the fire and stared at the ground, hastily pulling up grass stalks on either side of her.

Sephiroth would have answered the new girl's question, but Masamune's blade under the girl's chin was enough to make his point.

"Fight or submit, do not make empty threats girl" he said. The swordsman had moved at blinding speeds to where an after image of him was still over at the grass until it faded away

"I don't take kindly to people threatening my comrades." he said menacingly as he focused his attention on her as pain exploded through the lifestream directly into the girls head, pain that was FAR greater than the pain he caused Yuffie earlier that night.

"Submit" he commanded simply.

* * *

Liath hadn't even seen the silver-haired man move. A shiver ran up her spine as she felt an odd electric feeling in her head.

"Interesting. That felt rather nice..." She smiled up at the silver-haired main with the overly long sword.

_'Is he compensating for something else with that huge sword? I wonder...'_

Liath liked the feeling of the sword against her neck, the small amount of blood being drawn. It gave the situation a whole new feel of danger.

"Sephiroth, I presume?" Her smile faded slightly, her tail flicking slightly over the sheath on her back. Without batting an eye, she stared up into the man's eerie green eyes and smiled crookedly.

Without pausing, she had her own sword drawn, mimicking the position the Sephiroth had, her blade resting on his exposed throat. She moved in the exact same speed he had.

"Your too serious, Mr. Silver." With that, she sheathed her sword and stepped away from him to see his full form.

Liath looked the man up and down, nodding her head in approval.

"You got lucky. You didn't end up with a tail."

* * *

Sephiroth smirked to himself as he mentally lifted the earth from under him, forming it into steps as he walked down slowly. His wound had already begun sealing itself, seemingly of its own accord.

"What is your name ninja?" he asked dully, his eyes going bloodshot as an electrical charge went through the air, his madness beginning to take hold of him as it sensed a challenge.

"So I can know who it WAS that I killed."

"Ninja? I wish! Someone has had one too many bowls of Fruit Loops today..." She said, commenting on his odd behavior.

As Liath felt the electrical charge in the air, her pupils immediately changed into that of a fox. She smirked once more, her fangs fully showing.

"Name's Liath." With that she placed her hands together and bowed in respect. The minute she stood back up, she changed her stance. She spread her legs further apart, bracing for an attack, and drew her sword.

"They told me you were bloodthirsty, but I never could have imagined you properly in my wildest dreams." She growled, a lopsided smirk still on her face, her tail grazing the ground lightly.

Sephiroth was never one for witty banter, though he could do it, he felt it took away from his element. He feinted right but then jumped twenty feet into the air where he threw a ball of pure lighting at her expecting her to dodge it, and prepared for her reaction as his deadly mind whirled about in the possibilities.

_'Oooh, lightning....Me likies lightning...'_

Instead of doing the sane thing and dodging, Liath merely braced herself for the attack, sword in front of her face.

The lightning collided with her sword, the hilt preventing it from spreading through her body. Her smile faded slightly.

"Damn! I always forget that when I do that, I don't feel the shock! Stupid conduits..." She hissed under her breath.

She looked up at the man still in the air and waited for his next attack. She was told to wait for his move and never underestimate him. That was the advice they had given her and she would do her best to follow it...that is, until she got bored with it. Liath was very well known for her lack of patience.

Loosing patience quickly, she sheathed her sword once more and clapped her hands together. Slowly, she drew them apart, a ball of purple fire growing between them.

Smiling sadistically, she clutched the ball in her fist and threw it directly at Sephiroth, like one would pitch a baseball.

The purple ball of flame sailed through the air hitting its target with supreme accuracy exploding into a hail of fire and a blinding cover of smoke. Sephiroth smirked as his MP barrier absorbed the attack. In the smoke cover he quickly jolted his hands in a few stretching exercises and hurled the giant glowing ball of blue Ice magic the opposite direction of his enemy. His mind did a couple of quick calculations,

_'If I can keep her standing there for three seconds after the smoke clears, then she should get a nice surprise in her back.' _When the smoke cleared, Sephiroth stood with a smirk on his face as a light blue aura faded from his body's MP barrier.

_'Always comes in handy...'_ he thought smugly to himself.

"You're not normal, are you kid?" he asked, making witty combat banter to keep her still and unsuspecting.

_'KID?!?!?!' _She thought, outraged.

Using the smoke as cover, she leaped up and latched onto Sephiroth's neck.

"No one calls me 'kid'." With that, she sunk her teeth deep into the usual spot for an artery but pulled back almost instantly.

"Guck...You taste funky! What the hell!" Liath commented, a mixture of disgust and confusion on her face.

Sephiroth hurled back down after she released his neck.

_'Got to keep her still!' _he thought as he flew down and grabbed her by her arms and held her still as a giant ball of light blue Ice 3 magic came hurling over the horizon.

"Eat this." he said as he jumped up and back-flipped, kicking her directly into the ball of freezing magic. The ball detonated, freezing everything within a 30 mile radius. When the blinding light cleared the entire area was covered in snow. Sephiroth looked around and smirked.

"Sephiroth: 3 Shinra: 0"

"That was cold!! Jerk! Do you know how long it is going to take me to dry my tail?!?!" Liath growled angrily.

Using the same technique Sephiroth had used, Liath simply let the ice blast collide with her MP barrier, resulting in lots of slush and snow everywhere.

Like most feline-esque creatures, she was not found of getting wet, subsequently turning her once cheerful disposition into that of a shorn lion.

Liath narrowed her yellow eyes and glared at Sephiroth.

"You assume I work for Shinra. How cute." She said simply, smiling wickedly.

"I suppose you have that whole 'I am the only creation, I am all powerful!' macho complex, eh? Oh well, I guess it can't be helped."

With that she drew her sword once more and twirled it over her head twice. After her seemingly random act, she proceeded to grasp the sword in both hands.

Suddenly, she lunged at Sephiroth, fully intending him to think she would come straight at him.

However, he was not aware that she had planned to do the exact opposite once close enough.

Sephiroth's look was unimpressed as he moved a silvery lock out of his face. Seeing her flare for the melodramatic, it sardonically reminded him a bit of himself.

_'That's it, this has gone far enough.'_ he thought as his Mako green eyes tracked her movements toward him. Seeing her dash at him with her sword, Sephiroth did what he always did when a person tried to attack him; he moved. *The master of defense is one who is never in the same place as the attack.* he remembered reading from his book of battle strategies. With that, he calmly moved to the side of her intended blow, reaching out with his fist to land a swift blow to her cheek.

The blow to her cheek didn't even faze her, though she had indeed felt it. She merely continued running slightly past him and abruptly dug her sword into the ground, using it to propel her into the air.

As she flew into the air, she dislodged her sword, taking it with her.

A risky move, yes, but that made things all the more fun to her.

Holding her sword in front of her face (not straight out!!), she curled into a ball and rolled in midair so as to fall quicker.

By now, she was mere inches away from Sephiroth's blade, waiting for him to react.

Sephiroth merely blinked and raised his gloved hand, catching her blade in his firm grasp. He held her there suspended in air by her own sword.

"Flawless plan, except that it relies on a blade reaction and it leaves you open for attack." His Mako green eyes burned into her eyes.

"Do not underestimate me, or it'll be your downfall." he said truthfully as he set her down lightly.

"I don't have anymore time to play with you girl, run along now." he said as he turned his back on her and brought Yuffie her breakfast.

"Eat." he commanded curtly as he lay back on the grass, looking up at the clouds that had begun to gather.

* * *

"Storms coming." he commented blandly to Vincent and Yuffie. Sephiroth didn't really particularly care what happened to that annoyance of a girl, as long as she didn't interfere with his plans.

_'She has yet to make herself of use to me, and if she wishes to travel with us, then she must make herself useful' _he deduced, touching his hand softly to the place where she had bit him.

_'I can't believe she bit me. ...strange girl...'_ he mused quietly, closing his eyes as he prepared to find a small shred of rest.

* * *

Yuffie nodded as she poked at her eggs, taking only a bite or two. It looked very appetizing, but she just didn't feel in the mood for a hearty breakfast before going off somewhere.

_'Just who the heck was that girl?'_ She felt as if she'd heard of someone who looked like her before, only she couldn't quite place where she had heard it from. Figuring it would be best to eat the meal and be done; she chomped down a piece of the bacon and wolfed down the rest of her eggs.

"This storm won't be that bad, will it?" She asked as she wiped her mouth.

"I mean, we'll at least be protected by the trees a little bit...right?"

"This storms going to be crazy." Sephiroth replied, his eyes still closed.

"But at least Vincent and I can use our Magic to keep the rain off us, if you want. Rain, wind and hail do not bother Vincent and me." He told her honestly.

"But if you want, we can have a barrier created or we can stay in camp until after it passes." he offered, silently hoping for some rest and a chance to relax.

Yuffie thought for a moment. She wanted to find this Cloud person. Then again, the faster they got to Cloud, the faster they got to destroying Midgar, which was the last thing she wanted to happen.

"Well, if you guys want to, we can stick around here until the storm passes..." She offered meekly.

"I honestly don't mind either way. After last night we might want to spend an extra day getting rest, though..."

Vincent looked toward Sephiroth as he spoke of a storm. Personally, the rain did not bother him because he found it quite refreshing. It allowed him to feel carefree for a change.

He watched attentively as Sephiroth subconsciously rubbed a hand over the spot where the odd girl had bit him. He was not present during the fight, but Yuffie had not failed to tell him about it.

Vincent tried in vain hide his growing smile at the thought of Sephiroth getting bit by some crazy girl and the fact that the wild girl had been the silver-haired man's equal. Those two things were making it very difficult to maintain an emotionless expression.

Of course, the strange girl was still here, but Vincent did not really have the same proof Yuffie did to call the girl strange. After all, he himself was odd to most. But, even though Yuffie had expressed her dislike of the girl, he couldn't help but feel a certain familiar presence radiating from the girl.

_'It is so familiar and yet I cannot place it. It is just out of my reach...'_

_

* * *

  
_

Liath was utterly shocked that the silver-haired man had stopped her attack. She had been informed that he was good, but she was not expecting something like that.

He had beaten her in a sense, hence earning her respect. She had decided to stay with his traveling party to assist in whatever task it was he was attempting. It was the only honorable thing to do when beaten fairly in a fight. In all honesty, she actually thought Sephiroth would be a pretty nice guy if he lightened up and learned to live a little. He was an enigma to her. And like all enigmas she crossed in her lifetime, she had the irrepressible urge to figure him out.

Now seated across a morbid looking man clothed in an intricately bucked cloak, she realized she owed the ninja an apology. Liath rarely apologized, but when the rare occasion arose, she was sincere about them.

Moving closer to the ninja, she couldn't help but feel guilty for jumping on her. With a slight smile and apologetic eyes, she sweetly said,

"I am truly sorry for tackling you. It is just that the way you were standing, it made you the perfect target. I wasn't really going to hurt you; I was just playing around. My sense of fun is rather different than the average person's and I tend to forget that sometimes. I know you do not have any reason to forgive me, but I feel obligated to ask it of you anyway." Although her voice still took on a darker tone at times, she actually meant what she had said.

This was the first time since their meeting that she had spoken in utmost seriousness. The girl proved, finally, that she actually had an intelligent brain inside her head.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

_Oh, and so Liath can actually stand up to Sephy, she is a masochist....He needed an interest but not a weak one. She was a later project than Vincent and Sephiroth, done in secret. And yes, since created after Sephy, she can match him, she just doesn't care. She was created just in case something went wrong with him, so she would have to be his equal. But because she was created after him and she is a different project, technically, she was created to be different than him because they wanted to try new things._

_Also, when I said about her holding the sword in front of her, it's like Saya's fighting pose from Blood +._

(Sorry, but this is all I could find to illustrate Liath's fighting style...but keep in mind, she doesn't fight exactly like Saya, just certain poses.)

[http://images4 [DOT] wikia [DOT] nocookie [DOT] net/bloodplus/images/thumb/0/00/Saya_Secondhalf_series [DOT] jpg/180px-Saya_Secondhalf_series [DOT] jpg]

[http://4 [DOT] bp [DOT] blogspot [DOT] com/_BW5BCY8EIfc/SFmGPztZcaI/AAAAAAAAAHI/3e0Q7DB7MnI/s320/SayaHagiandKai [DOT] jpg [DOT] jpeg]

[http://asstme [DOT] files [DOT] wordpress [DOT] com/2009/03/49700469_aa7cde484f [DOT] jpg]

[http://media [DOT] animevice [DOT] com/uploads/0/237/18413-saya_large [DOT] jpg]

[http://otaku [DOT] absolutelypointless [DOT] net/gallery/blood/saya278a [DOT] jpg]

[http://fc02 [DOT] deviantart [DOT] com/fs24/f/2007/326/2/8/Blood_____Saya___by_Kiara_Valentine [DOT] jpg]

[http://cdn [DOT] myanimelist [DOT] net/images/clubs/2/74475 [DOT] jpg]

[http://3 [DOT] bp [DOT] blogspot [DOT] com/_Hv-1mLTN7lI/Shd5AAttMMI/AAAAAAAAJlc/bz1xCHsQQfA/s400/saya280 [DOT] jpg]


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